THE vast majority of Scots support widening urban and rural land ownership to the public, communities and third sector, a poll has found.
Nearly three-quarters (71%) of respondents to a survey of 1500 back the proposal, while just 7% are opposed.
The poll, carried out by Ipsos MORI for Scotland’s Rural College (SRUC), also found Scots consider climate change, building on greenspace and inequality in land ownership to be three of the biggest issues for the future of the country’s land.
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Close to three-quarters (73%) said they knew little about the Scottish Government’s land reform agenda, but respondents were aware of challenges linked to land. These include concentrated ownership, absentee landlords, vacant and derelict land and land banking (where investors buy land in the hope of profiting in the future).
Some 44% of those surveyed said they were concerned by vacant and derelict land in their area.
Meanwhile, the majority of respondents said it is important to consider protecting wildlife (96%) and climate change (89%) when making decisions about the use of land in Scotland.
READ MORE: Major reforms recommended as handful of families own half of Scotland’s land
The interdisciplinary researcher in the Rural Policy Centre at the college, Rob McMorran, said: “There is an evident appetite among the participants for greater involvement in decisions about land use.
"Initiatives to encourage this should tap into the pride that is felt in Scotland's land, but also the concerns about vacant and derelict land, about the lack of community facilities and about land not being used to benefit local communities."
In their manifesto, the SNP pledged to improve Scotland’s system of land ownership “while balancing public and private interests”. They said they would bring forward a new Land Reform Bill.
The party pledged a £50 million Vacant and Derelict Land Investment Programme with a “particular focus in deprived areas where the blight of vacant and derelict land is most prevalent”.
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