Meeting of the Parliament 16 March 2016
Amendments 60, 96 and 97 adjust the requirements on community bodies that exercise the right to buy under the Land Reform (Scotland) Bill and the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 to notify the Scottish ministers of modifications to their memorandums, articles of association, constitution or registered rules.
Currently, section 43(1) requires community bodies to have the written consent of the Scottish ministers before making any such changes. Those provisions duplicated provisions in the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 and were made to ensure that, in changing its core governing documents, a part 5 community body did not inadvertently cease to be a part 5 community body.
On reflection, we believe that the requirements under section 43(1) are overly bureaucratic. Many changes that are made to core documents by community bodies may be simple or minor matters that are unrelated to the requirements in section 42, such as changes to how notices are to be communicated to members or to the remit of office-holders. There is no need for ministers to know about such changes in advance, and it is therefore disproportionate to require community bodies to seek the Scottish ministers’ permission for them. The effect of the amendments will be to require community bodies only to notify the Scottish ministers as soon as possible after the changes, rather than to seek permission in advance.
Amendments 96 and 97 effect corresponding changes to the right-to-buy provisions in the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003, including changes to the crofting community right-to-buy provisions.
Sections 55(3)(b) and (c) deal with scenarios in which the valuation of the land, or a section 57 determination on an application to buy a tenant’s interest, is either completed late or is appealed. They also deal with how those scenarios impact on the date that the consideration under part 5 is to be paid by a community body.
Amendments 68, 69 and 70 are minor and technical amendments that correct drafting omissions in section 55, in order to take account of the various permutations in the timetable for valuation.
Following stage 2, amendment 71 is a missed consequential amendment to section 58(4). The reference to subsection (2)(b)(i) is wrong, as that provision is now subsection (2)(a)(zi). The amendment corrects that.
I move amendment 60.
Amendment 60 agreed to.
Section 47—Right to buy: Ministers’ decision on application