Commission responds to consultation on community engagement in land

The Commission has responded to the Scottish Government's consultation on guidance on engaging communities in decisions relating to land.

In our response, we recommend the guidance should promote taking a human rights based approach to participation and that the relevant Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) should be explicitly included within the guidance. We also recommend the guidance should give consideration to the potential practical and financial barriers to participation people may face and how these barriers may be overcome, and that it should set out the obligations of landowners and other duty bearers with regards to complaints and redress mechanisms.

Read the full consultation response (PDF format). It is also available in Word format here.

For more background, read the Maastricht Recommendations on Promoting Effective Public Participation in Decision-making in Environmental Matters, and the Aarhus Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-Making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters.