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Meeting of the Parliament 14 March 2012

14 Mar 2012 · S4 · Meeting of the Parliament

Item of business

Land Registration etc (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

Wheelhouse, Paul SNP South Scotland Watch on SPTV

I should declare an interest. I worked for BiGGAR Economics when it did the piece of work for Registers of Scotland on the economic impact of its proposals. I was not involved in the study, but I had initial discussions with Registers of Scotland officers in framing the tender that we submitted. I also have a role in the Finance Committee; we had a low level of scrutiny of the bill, so there was not much evidence to go on.

I note that the estimated annual cost of the proposals is £3.85 million against an annual income to Registers of Scotland of £48.6 million, and that it is expected that efficiencies will arise to Registers of Scotland that will partly offset the annual cost. I also note the £19 million cost over the first five years, which puts in context the figures that James Kelly rightly highlighted when he spoke about Registers of Scotland’s reserves. Registers of Scotland is quite unusual in the public sector in that it needs to be self-sustaining. Its reserves are therefore an important part of its finances and of ensuring that it maintains its on-going operations.

The benefits from the bill will not just be to property owners, investors and authorities in reducing potential risks from inaccurate information. I will highlight a few benefits that I am aware of, having worked in the property sector, although not as a lawyer like Murdo Fraser and some other members. I have used the data that Registers of Scotland has produced. It is extremely important that the information is accurate, not only to understand who owns the land, but to understand what is happening in property markets.

Registers of Scotland has substantial reserves, which should keep the costs down. As others have stated, they could perhaps provide some scope for keeping the registration costs down and encouraging voluntary registrations. I noted the minister’s comment that, in effect, landed estates have a window of opportunity to increase the amount of land that is registered at an advantageous rate. That is an important point to raise.

I agree with Annabel Goldie on the mapping issues. The suggested tolerances for Ordnance Survey maps of 0.3m to 0.4m might sound accurate to some, but in the context of property they create the opportunity for ransom strips. The strips might be thin but, if there is some doubt about who owns them, they could cause all sorts of problems in securing investment. I agree with James Kelly about the Economy, Energy and Tourism Committee’s excellent degree of thoroughness. Paragraph 78 of the committee’s report suggests that consideration has been taken of the cost of mapping and that the use of Ordnance Survey mapping should continue, with the understanding that, although it is perhaps not the ideal form of mapping for registration, it keeps costs to a reasonable level.

Paragraph 77 notes that Ross MacKay of the Law Society of Scotland told that committee that

“the difficulty at the moment is that many titles are based on old sasines, which have no maps at all.”—[Official Report, Economy, Energy and Tourism Committee, 11 January 2012; c 753.]

A map that is not perfect is better than no map at all. That is something to bear in mind.

As a community councillor, I was aware of regular problems in my local area to do with buildings at risk. It is difficult to enable the council to take enforcement action to ensure that a building at risk is maintained or improved if we cannot trace who the real owner is.

On common good land, there is the recent example of a wind farm at Drone hill in the Coldingham area of east Berwickshire. The wind farm had been approved and it was subsequently discovered that Drone moss, a site of special scientific interest, was technically still owned by the local community of Ayton but no one could identify who the legal owners were. My point is that registration has some practical benefits to local community organisations.

14:36

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Meeting of the Parliament 14 March 2012

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