Legal Approaches to Use of Public Assets in Scotland and Japan TL329

Legal and Policy Approaches to the Use of Public Assets in Scotland and Japan

Kume Hideyo is an Associate Professor at the College of Business Administration and Information Science at Chubu University, Japan. She is a socio-legal property scholar and a visiting researcher at the University of Strathclyde, where she is studying community rights of acquisition in Scotland

This presentation examines the legal frameworks governing the use of public assets in Scotland and Japan, with particular attention to the mechanisms that enable community involvement. It also considers how to achieve an appropriate legal balance to ensure the sustainable operation of such initiatives.

In Japan, a key recent development is the 2024 amendment to the Local Autonomy Act, which introduced the Designated Regional Collaborative Activity Organization scheme. Unlike the existing Designated Manager System, which is positioned as a private sector utilisation model, the new system adopts a resident-led community management approach. Once recognised as such an organisation, the group becomes eligible to lease administrative property. The details of this system are left to the discretion of local governments, and many local authorities are currently discussing the introduction of local ordinances to implement it.

In Scotland, a unified legal framework for community use of public assets has been established through Part 5 (Asset Transfer) of the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015.

Communities that submit proposals to local authorities have many opportunities to receive support for asset acquisition or negotiation from various institutions, such as the Community Ownership Support Service, the Scottish Land Fund, and Community Land Scotland. Including private consultants, Scotland in my view has a well-developed support system, which helps to reduce the risks associated with asset transfers. Regarding rules for protecting assets upon dissolution, such as clawback clauses, these are generally applied with restraint. Scottish Land Fund grants are discretionary, and the Fund reserves the right not to support projects where the conditions on the sale or transfer do not align with the guidance. For example, time limits for imposing conditions apply, and clawbacks are restricted to the monetary value of the discount offered by the seller.

While Japan relies primarily on leases and outsourcing contracts to enable community and private sector involvement in the management of public assets, Scotland offers a wider range of options. Despite these differences, comparing the legal mechanisms used in both countries to ensure the stable operation of these systems provides valuable insights into the relevant issues and challenges.