Scottish Government seek Planning Permission in Principle...

...for Knocknagael Farm, Inverness

Very interesting application here by the Scottish Government.

"...Whilst there will be a relatively small area of prime agricultural land lost to development and woodland planting, this must be considered against the economic benefit arising from the reinvestment of receipts in the modernisation of the National Bull Stud farm. This would have a net positive impact for the taxpayer in offsetting the cost of the 
modernisation of the Bull Stud Facility..."**

(**Applicant's Planning Statement, section 5.0 - 'Response to Key Constraints', sub-section 5.6 - 'Loss of Agricultural Land')  

"...Scotland’s soil supports first class agricultural, horticultural and forestry industries 
and in addition underpins its beautiful landscapes and habitats of national and international renown...

...Climate change and loss of organic matter emerge as the most significant threats to the functioning of Scottish soils...Loss of land to development (sealing), loss of biodiversity and acid deposition also represent significant threats to soil function...

...Loss of soil to development eliminates all ecological soil functions. However, there is limited evidence on which to assess the scale of this threat. It has a high local impact and is extensive in the existing populated areas particularly in the Central Belt. Based on the available data, loss of land to development is currently happening at its fastest rate within the last 25 years; current rates are double those in the early 1980s and early 1990s. However, sealing is poorly characterised in terms of scale and location. Although the total area developed can be calculated, the proportion of soil sealed is not known accurately as there are no data for how much soil remains in open spaces and gardens. The quality of land lost to development is also not recorded. Since loss of land to development is largely irreversible as far as natural soil functioning is concerned, it is essential that a better system of recording such losses is put in place..."***

(***Extracts from, 'Scotland's Soil Resource, Current State and Threats', Sept 2006, a Scottish Executive Environmental Research Report.)


Link to ePlanning Pages on THC web site here where there are some 52 comments and a whole range of documents listed.

As far as the applicant's docs are concerned I find the 'Supporting Statement' (as noted above) the most interesting, and I would very much recommend reading this statement to anyone with an interest in planning.  

Extract (- from section 1 - 'Introduction', 1.1 - 'Background to Application'):

...By way of background to the application SG has commenced a farm modernisation programme that will see several farm buildings demolished and replaced, and elements of the Scottish Government Bull Stud Knocknagael’s infrastructure upgraded at significant cost to the public purse. In a period of austerity, government should ensure that where possible, significant capital receipts are identified and managed to derive best value from 
the government estate. Through this modernisation programme SG has identified that several fields are no longer required for farm operations and it is therefore proposed to dispose of the surplus land, and to reinvest the receipts in capital projects. 

Areas of land immediately adjacent to the north of the farm have recently been developed for housing, and three of the fields in this northern part of the farm have been identified as being surplus to the farm’s operational requirements and suitable for development. 

Representations were submitted to the LDP Call for Sites consultation and accordingly the three fields have been shown as potential locations for housing or community developments...

Further to those representations, SG submitted detailed representations to the Inner Moray Firth LDP Main Issues Report. A Masterplan Framework and supporting information was submitted with the representations to demonstrate that the surplus land is capable of accommodating housing development and that it can contribute to the effective housing land supply.


Due to the need to release the value from the land and the anticipated timescales for the Local Development Plan process, SG is now seeking Planning Permission in Principle for housing development on the surplus land. 

Given the benefits that will be derived from the proposed development, mainly by contributing to the effective housing land supply and the consequent investment in capital projects, it is respectfully requested that the Highland Council gives this application its full support.