Menu
 
Home | News | Buccleuch boss pledges to get project to the line
 
News | 16th July 2020
 

Buccleuch boss pledges to get project to the line

Benny Higgins criticises Scottish Land Fund for its rigidity over its grant

 
 
 

BUCCLEUCH’S chief executive has pledged his continued personal support for the Langholm Moor community buy-out.

In an exclusive interview with the E&L Advertiser Benny Higgins said he would do whatever he could to help the Langholm Initiative achieve its ambition.

His comments came on the day that a Channel 4 News team spent the day in Langholm interviewing people about the £6.4m project to buy 25,000 acres from Buccleuch.

Mr Higgins was critical of the Scottish Land Fund (SLF), which has awarded £1m on the basis that the Initiative find the rest of the money by the end of October or it will lose its grant.

He said: “I spoke to Kevin Cumming (project manager) and Margaret Pool (chairwoman) on Tuesday and they are committed to getting to the figure which came out of the joint valuation.

“I said I was keeping my fingers crossed for them. They know we’re still hoping they will get there.”

He was conscious that it was a tricky environment currently but the project was all good and, if the Initiative needed to talk to him, he would try to be flexible and would be prepared to give them more time.

He said: “The problem with that is the SLF imposed a target and wants proof of funds and that all the legals are done by that date and that’s not acceptable.

“I think that’s far too rigid, probably on both counts and especially getting all the legals done.

“I made the point that the rules be amended a little and it was better to give them more time.

“I certainly propose to write to Roseanna Cunningham, secretary for environment, climate change and land reform, to suggest it would be better if the government gave them more time.

“I’m comfortable with giving them more time and the Initiative is still determined to stick with Plan A. A bit more time would give them that chance.

“In circumstances like this, if they get a bit of traction with one benefactor, it gives encouragement to others.”

He understood the reason why the SLF had such a strict timetable because if the £1m was not taken up by the Initiative, it would give the SLF time to redistribute the funds to other projects before the end of the financial year.

Asked how important the buy-out was to Buccleuch based on what the land would be used for, he said Buccleuch had to be run as a business.

When he took up his post in March last year, he went through the company’s strategy and its values and he believed this project was where strategy and values converged.

Its four values were its colleagues, customers, including tenants, communities and environment.

He said: “This is obviously a good opportunity for us. I’ve always said that if we have values, we have to have action and evidence that we treat them with importance.

“What we’ve done in Newcastleton and what we’re doing in Langholm is a chance to show our values give communities enhanced opportunities to do what they want to do.”

Mr Higgins was also asked why Buccleuch did not consider doing a similar project itself.

He said: “We concluded that we wanted to reduce our footprint and reinvest in other parts of the business.

“It’s important we can be robust and resilient and protect and create jobs.”

Mr Higgins was on the Scottish government’s advisory group on economic recovery, whose report was dominated by the issues of inequality, education and unemployment.

He said: “We’re going to face quite a surge in unemployment; there is no other way to put it so a business like ours must manage itself carefully. That was a motivation to sell.”

He was surprised by the amount of publicity the buy-out had attracted but land reform was a big issue.

He said: “What we have achieved in Newcastleton and what we’re getting close to in Langholm and Wanlockhead shows what is possible.

“I hope it succeeds but there is a limit to what we can achieve. If it doesn’t succeed, it wouldn’t be damaging to our credibility.

“We’ve gone about it in a gentlemanly fashion and we could not be more keen.”

Mr Higgins was interviewed by Alex Thomson, chief correspondent of Channel 4 News, as was Roger Maxwell, Langholm Common Riding chairman.

Speaking on the moor, Roger described the cultural and historic importance of the Common Moss to the people of Langholm who had marked its boundaries since 1759.

Also interviewed were Kevin Cumming, Margaret Pool, Langholm Academy pupil Cerys Gough, Andy Wightman, Scottish Green Party MSP for Lothian and author of Who Owns Scotland, and John Galloway, co-owner of the Eskdale Hotel.

The feature is expected to be broadcast tonight. The programme airs at 7pm on C4 and at 8pm on C4+1.

 
 
Would you like to support us?

The Eskdale and Liddesdale Advertiser is our community owned local newspaper and even in today’s troubled times, we aim to bring you local news and articles in an impartial, responsible and factual way.

We hope you have enjoyed reading this free article but we need your support so we can keep delivering quality journalism that’s open and independent and keeps you up to date with what is happening in Eskdale and Liddesdale.

Every reader’s contribution, however big or small, is so valuable to us.
 
 
‘Owned by the Community...Published for the Community’
Do you have a story?

Please get in touch if you have a story or article you would like to see published.

Related Articles

Castleholm is officially in community hands

Landmark deal sees cherished land transferred to the people of…

 

Hope Hospital shines in Excellence in Care inspection

The Thomas Hope hospital in Langholm recently had a six-month…

 

Emergency services rescue woman from chilly River Esk

Firefighters from Langholm, Annan, Dumfries and Gala required as water…

 

Disappointment with LINK’S response to cash worries

Cash machine company not a lot of help in finding…

 

Holiday village plans for Irvine House and grounds

Buccleuch’s vision for up to 150 lodges couldbenefit Langholm businesses…

 

Town loses out on funding due to mis-reported population

Discrepancy between census statistics andBorderlands figures has cost Langholm dear…

 

All kinds of everything at the 172nd Langholm Show

MAIRI TELFORD JAMMEH reports on Langholm’s Rural Highlight in an 8-Page Supplement…

 

Banking possibilities under investigation

After announced closure of Bank of Scotland,solutions including a Post…

 

15 nights road closure for A7 improvements

Overnight works to resurface road south of Canonbie will run…

 

Signage, speed limit, flooding and potholes

An update from the A7 Action Group’s meeting The A7…

 

Bank of Scotland to close Langholm branch

As High Street loses its last remaining bank,residents are saying…

 

Inaction by BT leaves Hub incommunicado

Eskdalemuir venue unable to function properly without phoneline or broadband…

 

Nearly 1,000 objections to Warblaw Woodlands

Langholm locals object to commercial forestry on their doorstep An…

 

Warblaw worries are endorsed by politicians

MSP Oliver Mundell urges residents to join Warblaw fight ahead…

 

Depression on David Street to be tackled

and other updates from Councillor Male After many months of…

 

Golden time in Paris for Copshaw’s Paralympian

Team GB Paralympic swimmer Stephen Clegg ALSO breaks long-standing record…what…

 

Teachers face up to the Great North Run

In March this year, Headteacher of the Langholm and Canonbie…

 

Residents encouraged to react to Warblaw plans

If you are against the blanket of trees proposedfor our…

 

Consultation on change of school week structure

Views, opinions and concerns sought from parents/carers Dumfries and Galloway…

 

Letters to the Editor

More Warblaw worries With reference to Mark Hallam’s letter of…

 

Show Season starts with Canonbie's fine flower-power

Mairi Telford Jammeh reports from Canonbie Flower Show and vintage…

 

Much opposition to plan for Warblaw woodlands

Action Group formed to challenge forestry company’s ‘blanket of trees’…

 

Over 100 years of Thomas Hope service between them

Angela, Kate and Sheena have all worked in a job…

 

Langholm Common Riding 2024

 

Common Riding Gallery 2024

Lots more photos in this week’s E&L. Many thanks to…

 

Three of the best

Everyone at the E&L and Muckle Toon Media wish Bailey…

 

Have your say on the future of Langholm Housing

New survey aims to gather opinion on what the town…

 

Castle Craigs Rideout in photos

 

Langholm Common Riding 2024

And so it begins… It was a wee bit on…

 

Holes filled, wall secured

At least the Common Riding route is more or less…

 

Future-proofing the Common Riding

No less than 63 ponies and their riders sallied forth…

 

The Langholm Alliance: facing challenges head-on

‘Despite funding limitations, we are dedicated to transforming Langholm into…

 

Wildfires cause Greek Island holiday scare

A Langholm couple on holiday, in Kardamena on the idyllic…

 

Mighty Hikers Mel and Karl raise over £4k for Cancer Care

Local couple walk in Wales to support charity dear to…

 

Pureous Bunkumos

Saturday dawned bright and beautiful for the Copshaw Common Riding,…

 

Envisioning D&G's future landscape

Ideas for the future landscape of Dumfries and Galloway were…

 

20 WILL BE plenty!

 Blanket 20mph limit for all Langholm streets plus more…

 

Team work helps secure Langholm Day Centre

Manager Sandra Graham pulls out all the stops to negotiate…

 

EDF presents revised plans for windfarm near Copshaw

Revised plans for a major new windfarm to be sited…

 

DGRI cyber attack leads to region-wide mailing

CEO will contact every household in region with online safety…

 
 
requires mailchimp logins and wired up to a list
Join our mailing list
Keep up to date with all that’s going on at the E&L
This website uses cookies
This site uses cookies to enhance your browsing experience. We use necessary cookies to make sure that our website works. We’d also like to set analytics cookies that help us make improvements by measuring how you use the site. By clicking “Allow All”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyse site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts.
These cookies are required for basic functionalities such as accessing secure areas of the website, remembering previous actions and facilitating the proper display of the website. Necessary cookies are often exempt from requiring user consent as they do not collect personal data and are crucial for the website to perform its core functions.
A “preferences” cookie is used to remember user preferences and settings on a website. These cookies enhance the user experience by allowing the website to remember choices such as language preferences, font size, layout customization, and other similar settings. Preference cookies are not strictly necessary for the basic functioning of the website but contribute to a more personalised and convenient browsing experience for users.
A “statistics” cookie typically refers to cookies that are used to collect anonymous data about how visitors interact with a website. These cookies help website owners understand how users navigate their site, which pages are most frequently visited, how long users spend on each page, and similar metrics. The data collected by statistics cookies is aggregated and anonymized, meaning it does not contain personally identifiable information (PII).
Marketing cookies are used to track user behaviour across websites, allowing advertisers to deliver targeted advertisements based on the user’s interests and preferences. These cookies collect data such as browsing history and interactions with ads to create user profiles. While essential for effective online advertising, obtaining user consent is crucial to comply with privacy regulations.