Crofters (Scotland) Act 1993
Crofters (Scotland) Act 1993
1993 CHAPTER 44
An Act to consolidate certain enactments relating to crofting, with amendments to give effect to recommendations of the Scottish Law Commission.
[5th November 1993]
Be it enacted by the Queen's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:—
The Crofters Commission
1 Constitution and general functions of Crofters Commission.
(1) The Crofters Commission (‘the Commission’) established by section 1 of the 1955 Act shall continue in being.
(2) The Commission shall have the functions of reorganising, developing and regulating crofting in the crofting counties of Scotland, of promoting the interests of crofters there and of keeping under review matters relating to crofting, and such other functions as are conferred on them by or under this Act.
(3) The Commission shall carry out their functions in accordance with such directions of a general character as may be given by the Secretary of State and in carrying out their functions shall have regard to local circumstances and conditions.
(4) The Commission shall consist of not more than 9 members appointed by the Secretary of State, and of the members one shall be appointed by the Secretary of State to be chairman of the Commission.
(5) The Commission shall include members with knowledge of crofting conditions and at least one member who can speak the Gaelic language.
(6) The provisions contained in Schedule 1 to this Act shall have effect in relation to the Commission.
2 Particular powers and duties of the Commission.
(1) In the exercise of their general functions of reorganising, developing and regulating crofting, it shall be the duty of the Commission—
(a) to keep under general review all matters relating to crofts and crofting conditions, including, without prejudice to the foregoing generality, land settlement, the improvement of land and livestock, the planting of trees, the supply of agricultural equipment and requisites, the marketing of agricultural produce, experimental work on crofting methods, the provision of demonstration crofts, the needs of the crofting communities for public services of all kinds, the provision of social amenities and the need for industries to provide supplementary occupations for crofters or work for their families; and to make such recommendations as they may think fit on any of the matters aforesaid;
(b) to collaborate so far as their powers and duties permit with any body or person in the carrying out of any measures for the economic development and social improvement of the crofting counties;
(c) to advise the Secretary of State on any matter relating to crofts and crofting conditions which he may refer to them, or on which they may think fit to submit advice to him;
(d) to exercise the powers conferred on them by this Act in such manner as may seem to them in each case desirable.
(2) For the purpose of assisting them in the local execution of their functions under this Act, the Commission shall have power to appoint a panel of suitable persons resident in the crofting counties to act as assessors, when required by the Commission so to act, and may make to such assessors in respect of any loss of earnings they would otherwise have made or any additional expenses (including travelling and subsistence expenses) to which they would not otherwise have been subject, being loss or expenses necessarily suffered or incurred by them for the purpose of enabling them to perform duties as such assessors, such payments as the Secretary of State may, with the approval of the Treasury, determine.
(3) The Commission shall send to the principal clerk of the Land Court to be recorded in the Crofters Holdings Book every order, determination, consent, authorisation or other proceeding of theirs which they may think proper to be recorded therein.
(4) The Commission shall make an annual report to the Secretary of State on the exercise and performance by them of their functions under this Act and the Secretary of State shall lay a copy of the report before each House of Parliament, together with such comments as he may think fit to make.
Meaning of croft and crofter
3 Meaning of croft and crofter.
(1) Subject to subsection (2) below, in this Act ‘croft’ means—
(a) as from 1st October 1955, every holding (whether occupied by a landholder or not) situated in the crofting counties to which any of the provisions of the Small Landholders (Scotland) Acts 1886 to 1931 relating to landholders applied;
(b) as from 1st October 1955, every holding situated as aforesaid to which section 32 of the Small Landholders (Scotland) Act 1911 applied (statutory small tenants);
(c) as from the date of registration, every holding situated as aforesaid which was constituted a croft by the registration of the tenant thereof as a crofter in the Crofters Holdings Book under section 4 of the 1955 Act;
(d) as from the date of the direction, every holding situated as aforesaid which was constituted a croft by a direction of the Secretary of State under section 2(1) of the 1961 Act;
(e) as from the date of entry, every holding entered in the register of crofts by the Commission in accordance with their decision under section 15(4) of the 1955 Act where—
(i) the decision was notified to the landlord and the tenant of the holding; and
(2) Subsection (1) above is without prejudice to the effect of—
(a) section 24(1) of this Act and the corresponding provision of the 1955 Act which is repealed by this Act (that is to say section 12(4));
(b) a direction under section 24(2) or (3) of this Act and the corresponding provisions of the 1955 Act which are repealed by this Act (that is to say section 16(7) or (9)).
(3) In this Act ‘crofter’ means the tenant of a croft.
(4) For the purposes of this Act—
(a) any right in pasture or grazing land held or to be held by the tenant of a croft, whether alone or in common with others, and
(b) any land comprising any part of a common grazing which has been apportioned for the exclusive use of a crofter under section 52(4) of this Act, and,
(c) any land held running which has been apportioned under section 52(8) of this Act,
shall be deemed to form part of the croft.
(5) For the purposes of this Act, where—
(a) a crofter has acquired his entire croft other than any such right or land as is referred to in subsection (4) above; or
(b) any person, not being a crofter, has obtained an apportionment of any land under section 52 of this Act,
then the person referred to in paragraph (a) or (b) above shall be deemed to hold the right or land referred to therein in tenancy until held otherwise and that right or land shall be deemed to be a croft.
Enlargement of crofts
4 Enlargement where owner and crofter are in agreement.
(1) Where the owner of any land which is not itself a croft and which does not form part of a croft agrees to grant a tenancy of such land to any crofter, then—
(a) except in such a case as is mentioned in paragraph (b) below, if the owner of the said land and the crofter agree that such land will form part of any croft of which the crofter is tenant, the land shall, as from the date of entry under the said tenancy, form part of such croft and this Act shall apply accordingly to the croft as so enlarged;
(b) in a case where the area of the croft (exclusive of any common pasture or grazing land held therewith) together with the area of the land exceeds 30 hectares and the rent of the croft together with the rent under the said tenancy exceeds 100, the Commission may, on an application being made to them jointly by the owner of the land and the crofter, direct that the land shall form part of the croft and, if they make such direction, then as from the date of the direction or the date of entry under the said tenancy, whichever is the later, the land shall form part of the croft, and this Act so far as relating to crofting shall apply accordingly to the croft as so enlarged.
(2) The Commission shall make a direction under subsection (1)(b) above only if they are satisfied that such a direction—
(a) would be of benefit to the croft; and
(b) would not result in the croft as enlarged by the land referred to in that subsection being substantially larger than 30 hectares or capable of being let as a croft at an annual rent substantially in excess of 100.
(3) Where any such land as is mentioned in section 38(3)(a) of this Act is included in a reorganisation scheme made under that section and confirmed by the Secretary of State, then as from the date...
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