Scottish land ownership 'more concentrated' despite reforms

Land ownership in Scotland is more concentrated despite two decades of land reform laws, with green capital investors becoming increasingly dominant, according to a new study.

- Severin Carrell

Andy Wightman, the land reform campaigner who published an examination of Scottish land distribution in 2012, has calculated that half of all privately owned rural land in Scotland, or 3.2m hectares (7.9m acres), is held by 433 people and companies, with only 2.76% of rural Scotland owned by community groups.

The analysis shows that hereditary peers own less land than before, while private investors who specialise in lucrative "green capital" schemes to create forestry and peat restoration projects have increased.

Scotland's third largest landowner is Gresham House, an investment company recently taken over by the US private equity firm Searchlight Capital. Wightman's detailed analysis of land registry records has established that it owns 53,775 hectares across 161 separate holdings.

The Duke of Buccleuch, who was Scotland's largest private landowner in 2012, has been voluntarily selling land to local residents, yet is still second, holding 66,345 hectares, 32% less than he did 12 years ago.