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New bull hire arrangements for crofters
09/02/2009
An independent review group is to be set up to look at ways of helping crofters keep or hire bulls in the future, according to Scottish Environment Minister Michael Russell, who made the announcement after meeting a cross party group of MSPs. In addition there will be two further changes to the new scheme announced by the Government last year, which will retain a hire element this season and provide facilities for overwintering at the end of the season if required.
The decision to end the current scheme came after a recommendation from the Shucksmith Inquiry which had been asked by Mr Russell to look at the issue. The new review group will have access to that report and previous reports which suggested that the scheme needed to close in its current form but it will be free to draw its own conclusions and to seek information and advice wherever it sees fit. The group will report by autumn 2009 and its underlying aim will be to examine the best way crofters can work together to keep quality livestock in Scotland's remoter rural areas.
Crofters who benefited from the Bull Hire scheme have already been told they can buy a bull this spring from the Crofters Commission for just £500. The Commission will now invite expressions of interest from crofting groups. But those who prefer not to take ownership but wish to continue hiring a bull from the Commission will have the choice of returning their bull to the Commission for overwintering in 2009.
Announcing the review group, Mr Russell said:
"I have listened very carefully to the views expressed in Parliament and to the MSPs and others who have made personal representations to me. These included a cross party delegation consisting of Peter Peacock MSP, Liam McArthur MSP and Jamie McGrigor MSP which I met at the end of last week. Dr Alasdair Allan MSP and some members of the cross party group on crofting have also talked to me about the matter, including Norman Leask of the Scottish Crofters Foundation.
"Creating the opportunity to look as widely as possible at this issue seemed to me to be the most practical solution and the one which would have the best potential to ensure that the views of all crofters are taken into account.
"Crofters will therefore have the opportunity, via the group, to help decide what should happen. In addition the interim arrangements for the coming year will have more flexibility than had been possible in our first plans.
"I want to ensure that as much consensus as possible informs the future of crofting so that it can contribute fully to the sustainable economic development of the Highlands and Islands of Scotland. I hope what I am announcing today will be seen as a useful step forward."
The Bull Hire Scheme is administered by the Crofters Commission on behalf of the Scottish Government. It is run out of two stud farms close to Inverness - Balrobert and Knocknagael. A number of different breeds of bulls were made available for hire by crofting groups, with the option for those bulls hired to be returned to the stud farms for overwintering. Crofting groups were charged £500 for each hire and also charged a contribution towards transport costs. The number of bulls hired by crofting groups has reduced in recent years, from 194 in 2003-04 to 120 in 2007-08; the last involving 104 groups, comprising approx 430 crofters.
The Committee of Inquiry on Crofting, an independent committee chaired by Professor Mark Shucksmith, recommended (May 12, 2008) that instead of a centralised facility serving the entire Highlands and Islands, support should be offered for private bull hire to meet the needs only of those areas where this would not be possible without this support. The Scottish Government agreed in its response (October 1, 2008) that the centralised facility was not the best way of maintaining livestock quality and cattle numbers in remote areas and encouraging crofters to work together to create viable cattle operations. The Scottish Government proposed to replace the bull Hire Scheme with new arrangements designed to facilitate private bull hire and to support community ownership in remote areas where the costs of transport or overwintering might otherwise prove prohibitive for crofting communities. New arrangements to mitigate these transport costs are being incorporated into the Scotland Rural Development Programme.
The Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and the Environment committed, in the Scottish Parliament on January 15, 2009, to meet other parties to discuss successor arrangements for the bull hire scheme. The proposal for a review group is the outcome from those discussions.