It is an ancient tradition passed on from generation to generation and safeguarded by Acts of Parliament since the end of the nineteenth century, but crofting has become increasingly fragile over the past 50 years, with the number of crofts decreasing and a rise in absentee owners.

That trend could now be reversed by the recommendations of the committee of inquiry into the future of crofting set up by the previous Scottish Executive. Its radical blueprint grasps the nettle of absentee landlords, which was a major concern for nine out of 10 people who gave evidence, by tying croft houses to a residency requirement. Tenants and owner-occupiers who fail to fulfil the obligations of residency and working the land will be required to assign or let the croft to a new tenant selected by a local crofting board (although no-one would have their home taken from them).

The proposal that these new boards - numbering between seven and 10 - would form a Federation of Local Crofting Boards which would replace the Crofters' Commission is the most controversial recommendation. It is an answer to the criticism most often levelled at the commission: that it works in the interest of crofters, but not always of crofting as a whole. The local boards will, therefore, be required to set rules for the governance of crofting in their areas that are in the public interest, and which would allow the building of new crofts. To avoid disputes when the public interest is at odds with the personal, the boards would set out criteria for the transfer of crofts, which must be satisfied even when they are assigned within families. However, the recommendation for an appeals mechanism - before disputes reach the Scottish Land Court - will be an essential component if the system is to gain the confidence of the crofting communities.

Redefining those communities to include local people who are not actively involved in crofting and extending the remit of the local grazings committees to become crofting township development committees should be welcomed as potentially extending the control of crofting communities over their own future, not least in harnessing sources of alternative energy.

For the past 50 years crofting has been regarded as a cross between an agricultural problem and a quaint heritage to preserve as a tourist attraction.The resultant welter of legislation led to the Highlanders' definition of a croft as a smallholding entirely surrounded by regulations, but failed the communities by allowing de-crofted houses to become holiday homes. The new proposals offer the possibility of allowing young people to become crofters and amount to a vote of confidence in a way of life which could once again become an integral part of Scottish society.