It's a beautiful spring day here in rural Angus. The sun is shining. The trees are in their first bloom. The larks sing and all seems to be well.
I am making use of my right to wander over this beautiful countryside. Down by the side of the River South Esk, at the old railway crossing just above the historic Bridge of Dun.
Little remains of the railway bridge. I think it was even a pre-Beeching casualty. One side of the span has been retained for the use of anglers crossing the river. The metal plates that form the footpath are rusted and weathered and the masonry piers they join make a fine sight in the bright day.
The river flows underneath and the sound of the water is soothing. Dippers skim over the surface before diving into the water. I sit on the river bank and enjoy the sun. A sign notes that this is "private angling".
Many years ago the Brechin Angling Club of which I was a member would get a day on the Montrose Angling Club's water at the South Esk.
The Brechin club was a considerably more democratic body than the Montrose equivalent. Probably one of the reasons why even though I lived in Montrose I joined the Brechin club. Simply because I could.
In Montrose the Angling Club was the preserve of the wealthy and the well connected, of which I was neither.
All of this rambling makes sense when looking at the ownership of land and of rights over that land. It is why reform of land ownership and rights is a crucial question which an independent Scotland must grasp.
Scotland has by far and away the most concentrated land ownership in Europe. Kevin Cahill, author of "Who Owns Britain" points out that the UN routinely requires reform of land ownership as a condition of aid to countries with a lesser concentration of ownership (1).
A situation where 969 people own more than 60% of Scottish private land clearly begs the question of how on earth they came by that land. A fine story it is of theft, extortion and deceit. Readers wishing to learn more would benefit from a copy of Andy Wightman's "The Poor Had No Lawyers" from whence this disturbing statistic comes.
Far from being a matter of historical interest only, land ownership remains a current concern for anyone who wishes to see social justice in Scotland.
Concentration of land ownership is the biggest obstacle to the change that rural communities in Scotland need if further depopulation and rural poverty are to be avoided.
Behind the opposition to land reform is the fact that ownership of it is incredibly lucrative. The top fifty recipients of Common Agricultural Programme funds in Scotland netted an average of £3.3 million pounds each (3). This is a staggering amount of money to line the pockets of landowners.
The land that communities need to develop services to sustain themselves is the land that is blocked from them. The proposed new Community Right to Buy simply does not go far enough. A "right" which can only be exercised when a landowner is considering a sale merely gives an incentive for landowners to hang on to their land and maximise their tax-dodging.
The same goes for urban communities who are currently blocked from even this mostly notional "right" to buy. Land reform is not a rural concern alone as Wightman argues so eloquently (2).
Land for affordable housing and development is at the mercy of historical quirks of ownership on the one hand and the vagaries of a distorted "market" on the other.
It is the inflated price of land that makes housing unaffordable. A price that benefits a closed shop of speculators, closed trusts and landowners who operate a cartel that all the rest of us pay for.
Dispossessing the large landowners would at a stroke make this country one of the most equal in the world. Access to land for housing and development of human services would make this country a world leader in sustainability and quality of life.
This will only be possible with a truly radical approach to a newly independent country.
Another reason to vote YES. Another reason why voting YES is just the start.
(1). Cahill, K - Who Owns Britain? (2000) Canongate
(2). Wightman, A - The Poor Had No Lawyers: Who Owns Scotland and How They Got It (2010) Birlinn
(3). Wightman, A - Scotland: Land and Power – the Agenda for Land Reform (1999) Luath Press
I am making use of my right to wander over this beautiful countryside. Down by the side of the River South Esk, at the old railway crossing just above the historic Bridge of Dun.
Little remains of the railway bridge. I think it was even a pre-Beeching casualty. One side of the span has been retained for the use of anglers crossing the river. The metal plates that form the footpath are rusted and weathered and the masonry piers they join make a fine sight in the bright day.
The river flows underneath and the sound of the water is soothing. Dippers skim over the surface before diving into the water. I sit on the river bank and enjoy the sun. A sign notes that this is "private angling".
Many years ago the Brechin Angling Club of which I was a member would get a day on the Montrose Angling Club's water at the South Esk.
The Brechin club was a considerably more democratic body than the Montrose equivalent. Probably one of the reasons why even though I lived in Montrose I joined the Brechin club. Simply because I could.
In Montrose the Angling Club was the preserve of the wealthy and the well connected, of which I was neither.
All of this rambling makes sense when looking at the ownership of land and of rights over that land. It is why reform of land ownership and rights is a crucial question which an independent Scotland must grasp.
Scotland has by far and away the most concentrated land ownership in Europe. Kevin Cahill, author of "Who Owns Britain" points out that the UN routinely requires reform of land ownership as a condition of aid to countries with a lesser concentration of ownership (1).
A situation where 969 people own more than 60% of Scottish private land clearly begs the question of how on earth they came by that land. A fine story it is of theft, extortion and deceit. Readers wishing to learn more would benefit from a copy of Andy Wightman's "The Poor Had No Lawyers" from whence this disturbing statistic comes.
Far from being a matter of historical interest only, land ownership remains a current concern for anyone who wishes to see social justice in Scotland.
Concentration of land ownership is the biggest obstacle to the change that rural communities in Scotland need if further depopulation and rural poverty are to be avoided.
Behind the opposition to land reform is the fact that ownership of it is incredibly lucrative. The top fifty recipients of Common Agricultural Programme funds in Scotland netted an average of £3.3 million pounds each (3). This is a staggering amount of money to line the pockets of landowners.
The land that communities need to develop services to sustain themselves is the land that is blocked from them. The proposed new Community Right to Buy simply does not go far enough. A "right" which can only be exercised when a landowner is considering a sale merely gives an incentive for landowners to hang on to their land and maximise their tax-dodging.
The same goes for urban communities who are currently blocked from even this mostly notional "right" to buy. Land reform is not a rural concern alone as Wightman argues so eloquently (2).
Land for affordable housing and development is at the mercy of historical quirks of ownership on the one hand and the vagaries of a distorted "market" on the other.
It is the inflated price of land that makes housing unaffordable. A price that benefits a closed shop of speculators, closed trusts and landowners who operate a cartel that all the rest of us pay for.
Dispossessing the large landowners would at a stroke make this country one of the most equal in the world. Access to land for housing and development of human services would make this country a world leader in sustainability and quality of life.
This will only be possible with a truly radical approach to a newly independent country.
Another reason to vote YES. Another reason why voting YES is just the start.
(1). Cahill, K - Who Owns Britain? (2000) Canongate
(2). Wightman, A - The Poor Had No Lawyers: Who Owns Scotland and How They Got It (2010) Birlinn
(3). Wightman, A - Scotland: Land and Power – the Agenda for Land Reform (1999) Luath Press
Ah, the joys of land ownership in Scotland. I've owned several small 'handfuls of earth' in Scotland in my time. Often with restrictions placed on what I could keep on it without permission from my feuers - who for some reason always seemed to be the Church of Scotland. They were against me selling intoxicating liquor, running a bawdy house, and also forbade me from keeping pigs or more than two ducks on my property. It seemed back in those days owners had still obligations to their betters
ReplyDelete