Debate on land use in South of Scotland

​The public event at Borders College was one of a series being held by the Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE) around the country to stimulate debate, and inform voters, on the key issues shaping Scotland’s future ahead of the Holyrood election in May 2026.

A group of experts were quizzed at the public event called, ‘Land in the balance: people, nature, economy’, about the various challenges posed by issues such as agricultural produce, wildlife and energy.

Concerns were raised about ‘food security’ with the UK currently importing 40 per cent of its food and 80 per cent of our timber.

Scotland’s first Land Use Strategy was launched 15 years ago but has still to be properly implemented.

The event highlighted that there are now 69 recognised communities in the South of Scotland but no governance structure in place to connect them all, especially when it comes to land management.

However, there was a common agreement that the South of Scotland is ideally placed to develop and implement a localised land management plan that can be adopted in other parts of the country.

A plan called the Regional Land Use Framework (RLUF) for South Scotland – the country’s first regional framework of its kind – was launched last year designed to guide sustainable land use decisions in the area.

RSE Fellow, Professor Des Thompson, who chaired the Panel debate, said: “We had a lively audience in the College and online, and I was struck by the shared desire for communities to be more actively engaged in decisions taken over uses of the land.

“Governance issues over local community involvement are unclear. The Regional Land Use Framework for South Scotland offers a golden opportunity for active community involvement in the regeneration of nature, economy and society.

“South of Scotland is a wonderfully special rural region – not a region just to be passed through heading north or south.”

Also on the panel was Eleanor Kay, from Scottish Land & Estates.