Stewardship: From Rhetoric to Reality

Abstract

Land reform is currently an issue of great importance in Scotland. The Scottish Law Commission has issued a Discussion Paper on Real Burdens and its Report on Abolition of the Feudal System. The Government has indicated that it intends to bring before the Scottish Parliament legislation implementing that report and also legislation on access, the introduction of National Parks in Scotland and the reform of Sites of Special Scientific Interest. The Land Reform Policy Group submitted its final proposals on rural land reform in January 1999 and recommended wide-ranging reforms. An important part of the land reform debate concerns greater recognition of the public interest. One way in which it has been suggested the public interest could be secured is through a redefinition of private rights of ownership and the imposition of an obligation of stewardship on those who own, occupy or otherwise manage land. This article considers briefly the form which such an obligation of stewardship might take, and examines the possible mechanisms by which any such obligation could be incorporated into Scots law and the effectiveness of these possible mechanisms in securing the public interest. It concludes that if the rhetoric of stewardship is to be made into a reality, this can only be achieved by altering the nature of landownership itself.