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(3) After that section, there is inserted—

“38A Appeal to Land Court: special provision as respects reorganisation schemes

(1) Any crofter who is the tenant of a croft situated in the township in relation to which a reorganisation scheme is made or the landlord of any such croft or the owner of any common grazing associated with the township or the owner of any land included in the scheme by virtue of subsection (3)(a) of section 38 of this Act may, within 42 days after the Commission serve a copy of the reorganisation scheme on him under subsection (8)(b) of that section, appeal by way of stated case, on one or more of the grounds mentioned in section 52A(3) of this Act, to the Land Court against—

(a) the Commission’s decision to reorganise the township; or

(b) the scheme.

(2) For the purposes of this section, the references in section 52A(3) to a “direction” and to “making” a direction are to be construed as including, respectively, references to a reorganisation scheme and to preparing such a scheme.

(3) In an appeal under this section, the Court may—

(a) confirm the decision and the scheme;

(b) confirm the decision and require the Commission to—

(i) make, by a date specified by the Court, such modifications to the scheme as the Court directs; and

(ii) serve a copy of the modified scheme on each of the persons mentioned in section 38(10) of this Act; or

(c) revoke the Commission’s decision.”.

(4) In section 39 (putting schemes into effect)—

(a) for subsection (1), there is substituted—

“(1) The Commission shall not take any steps in discharge of their duties or powers under this section in relation to a reorganisation scheme until (whichever first occurs)—

(a) the period of 42 days mentioned in section 38A(1) of this Act has elapsed without any appeal to the Land Court under that section being made; or

(b) every such appeal timeously made is—

(i) decided and, where by virtue of subsection (3)(b)(i) of section 38A of this Act the Land Court has required modifications to be made to the scheme, those modifications have been made and the Commission have complied with subsection (3)(b)(ii) of that section; or

(ii) abandoned.

(1A) The Commission—

(a) shall put into effect a reorganisation scheme—

(i) prepared by them under section 38(8)(a); or

(ii) where by virtue of subsection (3)(b)(i) of section 38A of this Act the Land Court has required modifications to be made to the scheme, of which they have served a copy by virtue of subsection (3)(b)(ii) of that section; and

(b) may do all such things as are required for that purpose.”;

(b) in subsection (3), for the words “shall, on a reorganisation scheme being confirmed by the Secretary of State,” there is substituted “may”;

(c) after subsection (5) there is inserted—

“(5A) Subsection (3A) of section 6 of this Act applies in relation to subsection (5) above as it applies in relation to the proviso to subsection (3) of that section.”;

(d) in subsection (7), the words “, on the scheme being confirmed by the Secretary of State,” are repealed;

(e) in subsection (8)—

(i) for the words “Secretary of State shall, on confirming the scheme,” there is substituted “Commission shall”; and

(ii) at the end of paragraph (b), there is inserted “,

and shall send a copy of each notice served by them under this subsection to the Scottish Ministers” ;

(f) in subsection (10)(b), for the words “of the confirmation of the scheme is served on him under paragraph 7 of Schedule 4 to this Act” there is substituted “is served on him under subsection (6) above”.

(5) Schedule 4 (confirmation of schemes by Scottish Ministers etc.) is repealed.

21 Meaning of croft

In section 3 of the 1993 Act (meaning of “croft” and “crofter”)—

(a) in subsection (1)—

(i) after paragraph (c) there is inserted—

“(cc) as from the date of registration, every holding situated—

(i) as aforesaid; or

(ii) as is mentioned in subsection (1)(b) of section 3A of this Act,

and registered by virtue of an application under that section;

(cd) as from the date of reversion, every holding reverting under section 20(1B), or by virtue of section 21A(1), of this Act;”;

(ii) in paragraph (d), for the words “as aforesaid” there is substituted “in the crofting counties”; and

(iii) after paragraph (e) there is inserted—

“(f) as from the relevant commencement date, every holding—

(i) entered in the Register of Crofts on that date which has been so entered for a continuous period of at least twenty years ending with that date; and

(ii) in respect of which no application or reference seeking a declaration or order that the holding is not a croft is on that date pending before any court;

(g) as from the date twenty years after registration, every holding—

(i) entered in the Register of Crofts for a continuous period of twenty years ending after the relevant commencement date; and

(ii) in respect of which no application or reference seeking a declaration or order that the holding is not a croft is at the end of that period pending before any court”; and

(b) after subsection (1) there is inserted—

“(1A) In paragraphs (f) and (g) of subsection (1) above, “the relevant commencement date” is the date on which section 21 of the Crofting Reform etc. Act 2007 (asp 7) comes into force.”.