New crofts should be created to meet growing demand and not only in the traditional crofting areas, Scotland’s political parties are being told ahead of the Holyrood election.

It is one of the five “actions” the Scottish Crofting Federation (SCF), crofters’ representative body, is challenging all parties to address in their manifestos.

There are around18,000 crofts in Scotland, home to 33,000 people. They are all in the old ‘Crofting Counties’ of Shetland, Orkney, Caithness, Sutherland, Ross-shore, Inverness-shire and Argyll.

The total hasn’t changed much for well over half a century, as legislation specifically prevented the creation of new crofts on most other land.

But the 2007 Crofting Reform Act lifted the prohibition. However since then the rate of new croft creation has disappointed many. None have been established outwith the old crofting counties.

Now the SCF is looking to the next Scottish Government to act to meet the demand from those who want a life on the land.

The SCF says “Many people want to come into crofting and crofting needs in-comers, especially young folk. The Crofting Commission must be given the resources to act on the annual census and to bring existing crofts back into use or made available. It is recognised that making existing crofts available is a long-term project so new crofts must be created simultaneously. Consideration must be given to creating new crofts in both existing crofting areas and beyond, especially on land under ministerial control.”

Such publicly owned land includes the area controlled by the Forestry Commission

The SCF also wants a new crofting as 126 problems or anomalies have been identified in present legislative framework.

It federation also seeking more targeted financial support from Europe and Edinburgh, moving away from “shoring-up the out-dated and unsustainable large-scale industrial model, to using public money to pay for the delivery of public goods.”

An increase affordable housing in rural communities, and a body given ministerial direction and funding to take responsibility for crofting development, are also sought

“We are keeping this simple”, said SCF’s chair Fiona Mandeville, “by presenting just the top five actions that must be addressed by the next Scottish Government. We have widespread agreement that by tackling these five areas the Scottish Government can make a real and positive impact on crofting communities and on rural Scotland.”