Better Late Than Never? Late Applications Under The Community Right To Buy

At the beginning of February, a community body known as the North West Mull Community Woodland Company was given permission by Scottish Environment Secretary, Roseanna Cunningham, to purchase the island of Ulva off the west coast of Mull, provided they can raise the purchase price of £4.2 million. The bid was made by the community body under the late application rules that apply to a Community Right to Buy application that is made once the property concerned is being marketed for sale.

The Community Right to Buy

The Community Right to Buy was first introduced by the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003. It allows community bodies to register an interest in land, which gives them the first option to purchase if the owner chooses to sell the land. Originally applicable only to predominantly rural land, the right to buy was extended to all of Scotland in 2016. The acquisition of Portobello Old Parish Church by Action Porty in 2017 is the first example of a successful community bid to purchase land in an urban area.

Although there are 230 entries on the Register of Community Interests in Land established under the 2003 act, the Community Right to Buy has only been activated in 19 of these cases. In the majority of situations the legislation has been used by the community body to influence negotiations with the landlord.

Late applications

While the Scottish Government continues to introduce new legislation which further develops Community Right to Buy, it is largely a pre-emptive right and late applications, made after a property has been marketed, are rarely successful.

Under the 2003 act a community body can submit an application to register interest in land after the owner has taken steps to sell or market the property. However, the Scottish Minister's policy is that this will only be accepted in exceptional circumstances. And a late application, if successful, will immediately trigger the right to buy, meaning the community body must raise the funds to complete the purchase within a matter of months. The North West Mull Community Woodland Company has now launched a worldwide appeal to raise the money required for its purchase of Ulva.

Additional criteria required for late applications

The first case under the Community Right to Buy, Holmehill Ltd v Scottish Ministers, concerned an appeal by a community body set up by residents of Dunblane to purchase 13 acres of public open space beside Dunblane Hydro Hotel, advertised for sale by Hilton Hotels...