March Newsletter

Brexit Report: 21st Century Clearances

We have been delaying this March newsletter until the result of today's Withdrawal Agreement vote was known.

If you picked up just about any newspaper last Tuesday, you'll have seen that our Brexit report generated quite a lot of media coverage. Strong language aside, the media interest in the potential impact of Brexit on rural Scotland was welcome. It shone a spotlight on the structural fragilities that rural Scotland is coping with, in particular the demographic challenge that the end of freedom of movement might make worse.

In response to the outcome of today's vote Amanda Burgauer, Chair of SRA, has released the following statement: "Regardless of individual voting preferences, whether leave or remain, our Brexit report paints a picture of a structurally fragile rural Scotland where pre-existing economic and social challenges are being exacerbated by lack of clarity about the future and a lack of resources. As yet, no party has committed to post-Brexit ringfencing of resources for rural people and places. Whatever the outcome of Brexit, planning for a stronger rural Scotland must start now and we are keen to see a community-led Rural Resilience Action Plan being prioritised to address these issues.”

The full report, 21st Century Clearances: What does Brexit mean for Rural Scotland can be downloaded from our website.

SRA on Rural Banking at Westminster

Scottish Rural Action trustee and volunteer, Sheena Boyd, was our voice in Westminster this week to give evidence to the Scottish Affairs Committee about financial and banking services in rural Scotland.

The Scottish Affairs Committee is appointed by the House of Commons. It examines the expenditure, administration and policy of the Scotland Office and its associated public bodies. Sheena spoke strongly about the negative impact of the loss of banks to people and businesses, she raised concerns about digital infrastructure and digital skills and she explained that the loss of essential services, like banks, can have wide reaching consequences for high street trading and the sustainability of rural communities.

You can see the full evidence session here.

Local Democracy Events

We plan to hold ten events during April across Scotland on the topic of local democracy.

We will publish more information about them once we have a schedule, but if you would like to help host one of these events, please get in touch. 

Please contact us on info@sra.scot. 

Tell us what you think!

We are inviting you to speak up for rural Scotland!

If you have comments you would like to make or share on Brexit, or any other topic affecting rural Scotland, email them to comments@sra.scot and we will publish a selection on our website.