Orders of the Day — Crofters (Scotland) Bill

Part of the debate – in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 27 January 1955.

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Photo of Mr Malcolm Macmillan Mr Malcolm Macmillan , Na h-Eileanan an Iar 12:00, 27 January 1955

That is what I feel, too, about this Clause. Clause 18, dealing with the granting of feus to aged crofters who have voluntarily renounced their crofts, refers to the question of freedom from burgh or county rates. It would seem to me that provision is being made here for—or perhaps against, which might be more benevolent—the implementation of the Sorn Committee's Report, which has not yet been before this House. It seems to imply that the Sorn Committee's Report will be approved here and that legislation will be approved by this House under which the croft house will be separated from the croft and rated separately from the croft. Otherwise, I doubt whether we need to go beyond the words, "or burgh rates"; because when we go beyond that we talk of the house of the crofter as if it had been separated at some time, in hypothetical future legislation, from the land.

The Bill is really assuming that the recommendations of the Sorn Committee will have been accepted and an Act of Parliament has been passed under which the aged crofter's house will be rated separately from the croft. It promises that a crofter in giving up the house will be no worse off than he was when the house was part of the croft. That is assuming that an Act to rate croft houses has taken effect. I should like that point clarified because it may cause a great deal of alarm. I know that the idea of the Taylor Report was to give an incentive to the aged crofter to renounce the land by giving him the benefit of the rate-free feu, but I doubt whether we can get a crofter to give up his land simply by saying, "You will not be more heavily rated after giving up your land, than if you remained on it—you'll be equally rated on the house, either way." It would be useful to have clarification of this today, otherwise we will be landed in all sorts of difficulties in Committee.

There are many points about which Highland Members could talk for a very long time; as I have already done, with apologies—but we feel strongly on these matters. If I have covered any points which other hon. Members intended to cover, I am sure they will forgive my being so talkative, because we are all talkative here. When we reach the Committee stage, I appeal to hon. Members opposite to believe that anything we have said on Second Reading and anything that we try to do in Committee is intended to strengthen the hands of the Commission while safeguarding the crofters—and to make it an effective and adequate instrument for the purpose which, I am sure, all Members of the House have in view.

We may have different approaches to the question and there may be arguments about such issues as how much land ought to be acquired, and how; but I think that there is little difference between us, on both sides, about, for example, the acquisition of land for land settlement, for the reorganisation of villages, and so on. Apart from these differences within the limited scope of the Bill, I am sure the Government will realise that everything that we on this side say and any criticism which we make is intended to be constructive, to strengthen the Bill, to strengthen the Committee's hands and to make more adequate attempts than were forecast by the Secretary of State to solve this age-old and long-neglected problem.

I should like to do one thing which I can do with more freedom now that I no longer am Chairman of the Highland Panel. I should like to thank my Panel colleagues, not only on this side of the House, but on the other side also, for the great deal of good work that they did and the unpartisan spirit they always showed in examining and "vetting," so far as I can apply that term, the Taylor Commission's Report. I thank the secretariat of the Panel, too, and the officials of St. Andrew's House, who made it possible for us to carry out those duties in accordance with the instructions of the Secretary of State. I would not have dared to have said these things to their faces, and to have complimented the Panel on its work had I still been a member and its chairman; but for once in my life may I discard modesty for truth and say a kind word to some of my own colleagues who would have been embarrassed if I said it at the Panel meetings to themselves?