Tonight (Thursday 13th July), I attended an event at Thainstone organised by the FAS (Farm Advisory Service) aimed to inform tenant farmers and landowners about important changes to tenancy legislation including the current Tenants’ Improvements Amnesty.
Agreed as part of the 2016 Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2016, the amnesty allows for certain past improvements carried out by the tenant to be eligible for way-go (end of tenancy) compensation despite missing notices or consents. The amnesty opens on June 13 and will run for three years.
It was a very informative event and a chance to network with the farming community. I occasionally receive casework and queries about tenancy rights from farming constituents, so I took the chance to learn more about these important changes.
The main messages of the evening to tenant farmers and landowners were:
- It is the tenant’s responsibilty to start the discussion with their landlord;
- this is a time-limited process – don’t delay;
- get professional advice
More information can be found in the Code of Practice – Amnesty on Tenants’ Improvements here.