Agricultural Holdings (Scotland) Act 2003

18 Irritancy of lease and good husbandry

(1) Without prejudice to any rule of law, it is for the landlord and tenant to provide in the lease constituting a short limited duration tenancy or a limited duration tenancy what grounds there are for irritancy of the lease.

(2) Any term of such a lease or of an agreement in connection with the lease that provides for the lease to be irritated solely on the grounds that the tenant is not or has not been resident on the land is of no effect.

(3) Where such a lease may be irritated on the grounds that the tenant is not using the land in accordance with the rules of good husbandry, what is good husbandry is to be construed, subject to subsections (4) and (5), by reference to the Sixth Schedule to the Agriculture (Scotland) Act 1948 (c. 45).

(4) Conservation activities are to be treated as being in accordance with the rules of good husbandry if they are carried out in accordance with—

(a) an agreement entered into under any enactment by the tenant; or

(b) the conditions of—

(i) any grant for the purpose of such activities paid out of the Scottish Consolidated Fund; or

(ii) such other grant of a public nature as the Scottish Ministers may by order specify.

(5) In the case of limited duration tenancies, such use of any of the land, or such change to the land, for a non-agricultural purpose as has been permitted under section 40 or 41 is to be treated as being in accordance with the rules of good husbandry.

(6) The landlord may not enforce any right to remove the tenant on grounds of irritancy unless notice as mentioned in subsection (7) is given.

(7) The landlord must give the tenant notice in writing of any intention of the landlord so to remove the tenant not less than 2 months before the date on which the tenant is to be removed.