SIR, – Lots of interesting letters now that the tenants champion has switched sides! Budding young farmers need land to farm. How much does tenanted land cost to rent?
The only published farm rent I have seen was that of Roxburgh Mains after the legal battle of its rent review. Published new rent of £48,000 for a 640 acre farm with farmhouse, cottage and large dreading.
Put another way, that’s £131 per day or divided by 24 hrs per day it is £5.40 per hour for a large farm.
Tenant farmers should rent figures in secrecy. They look at published auction prices for everything else they deal in. They would scream and shout for transparency if their products traded in a secret market, especially if they thought they were being done out of money.
Surely, for potential new entrants there is a need for an open market in tenancy prices. Perhaps tenancies could be sold at auction!
Landlords need legislation or bespoke lease agreements which protects them from right to buy so that budding farmers can get going at farming.
Many of us have able, financed, offspring wanting to farm but we need to be able to bid for farm tenancies.
Something has to change fast and rent transparency can aid this.


Jeanette Wilson
Eddieston
Peebles