The Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2016 (Commencement No. 12) Regulations 2020

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations bring into force sections 110 and 111 of the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2016 (“the Act”). The Bill for the Act received Royal Assent on 22 April 2016. Sections 125 to 127, 130 and 131 came into force the following day.

Section 110 of the Act inserts a new Part 3A into the Agricultural Holdings (Scotland) Act 1991 (“the 1991 Act”) to provide for a process whereby a 1991 Act tenant can relinquish their tenancy to the landlord in exchange for compensation or, if the landlord does not buy them out, can assign the tenancy to a new entrant or to a person progressing in farming, for the tenancy’s market value.

Section 110 of the Act was partially brought into force by the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2016 (Commencement No. 3, Transitory and Saving Provisions) Regulations 2016, for the limited purpose of making regulations under sections 32B(1), 32D(1) and (2), 32G(3)(b), 32J(5) and 32Q(8) of the 1991 Act.

Section 111 of the Act makes consequential modifications to the 1991 Act and the Agricultural Holdings (Scotland) Act 2003 (“the 2003 Act”) in light of new Part 3A of the 1991 Act and allows the Scottish Ministers to modify by regulations, the effect of the new Part 3A process in relation to tenants in certain types of tenancy.

Section 111 of the Act was partially brought into force by the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2016 (Commencement No. 3, Transitory and Saving Provisions) Regulations 2016, for the limited purpose of making regulations under section 74A of the 2003 Act.

Regulation 2 appoints 28 February 2021 for the coming into force of sections 110 and 111 of the Act for all remaining purposes.