Malcolm CoMBE's Avatar

Malcolm CoMBE

@malcolmcombe

Scots academic lawyer based at the University of Strathclyde. Interested in access to: a) land; and b) justice. Don (in the fitba sense). Blogs a bit. Demi-Gael.

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05.10.2023
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Latest posts by Malcolm CoMBE @malcolmcombe

Yeah, sure, she made up the quote, but as the man himself said...

05.03.2026 20:43 πŸ‘ 25 πŸ” 6 πŸ’¬ 3 πŸ“Œ 0
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FT comments section this morning - saying what everyone else is thinking, right?

05.03.2026 07:15 πŸ‘ 17161 πŸ” 5982 πŸ’¬ 514 πŸ“Œ 492
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Police Submit report on RCI offences to COPFS - Land Matters NORTH GLEN ESTATE LTD On 6 May 2025, I published a blog highlighting the fact that the owner of North Glenbuchat Estate, North Glen Estate Ltd., an overseas entity registered in the Turks and Caicos I...

BLOG - I am pleased to report that Police Scotland has submitted a report to COPFS relating to an offence to register in Register of Persons Holding a Controlled Interest in Land. Apologies to blog subscribers as automated email failed to send (am investigating)
andywightman.scot/2026/03/poli...

04.03.2026 19:11 πŸ‘ 13 πŸ” 11 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Not just to him tbh

04.03.2026 22:10 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Modernising Scotland's contract law Clearer rules for how contracts are made and what happens when they are broken.

We’re delighted that the Contract (Formation and Remedies) (Scotland) Bill was passed by the Scottish Parliament yesterday.

We would like to thank former Commissioner Professor Hector MacQueen for his significant contribution in bringing it to this stage.

Learn more: www.gov.scot/news/moderni...

04.03.2026 12:29 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
A screenshot of Google's AI Overview answer to the question "is haggis an animal". It says "Yes, the haggis is a small, furry mammal native to Scotland" and goes on to give the typical "asymmetrical legs" details.

A screenshot of Google's AI Overview answer to the question "is haggis an animal". It says "Yes, the haggis is a small, furry mammal native to Scotland" and goes on to give the typical "asymmetrical legs" details.

The Scottish have won the AI Wars.

05.03.2025 19:11 πŸ‘ 2399 πŸ” 923 πŸ’¬ 63 πŸ“Œ 95

incredible scenes where this is apparently a thing that Khameni has been wanting for ages and others on the council were pushing back against because optics but now council's all dead and congratulations on toppling the regime by giving the previous leader exactly what he wanted- a family throne

03.03.2026 23:46 πŸ‘ 1685 πŸ” 379 πŸ’¬ 41 πŸ“Œ 9
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New by-law to stop people roaming at first Scottish Center Parcs Restrictions at the site of its first Scottish holiday village will come into force in April.

Statutory access rights (and the restriction thereof, at a specific area) in the news. Byelaws can happen under the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 to restrict or regulate access, but it's fair to say this is a chunky land area to remove from the right to roam's scope
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

03.03.2026 15:03 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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I have seen a lot of cursed stuff in my time in academia but this is among the *most* cursed.
Grammarly is generating miniature LLMs based on academic work so that users can have their writing β€˜reviewed’ by experts like David Abulafia, who died less than two months ago.

03.03.2026 11:58 πŸ‘ 3545 πŸ” 1547 πŸ’¬ 96 πŸ“Œ 284
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Council to take over rundown Glasgow home in bid to sell it A neglected three-bed semi-detached house in the city's Mount Vernon area could be marketed to private companies.

An interesting wee housing story from the BBC, explaining the local authority is hoping to acquire a "rundown Glasgow home in bid to sell it" (an on-sale being required as apparently no local registered social landlords are interested in it).
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

02.03.2026 14:45 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Tulchan Estate is not for sale (again) - Land Matters On Wednesday this week, Savills announced the β€œsale” of the 8800 hectare Tulchan Estate in Morayshire at offers over Β£67 million. Newspapers have reported the β€œsale” today (see above extracts from the...

BLOG - Tulchan Estate is not for sale for offers over Β£67 million. Instead the shareholding of the company that owns it (in turn owned in Guernsey) is for sale. This has implications for tax receipts & the tenant farmers whose right to buy is once again blocked. andywightman.scot/2026/02/tulc...

27.02.2026 17:00 πŸ‘ 26 πŸ” 20 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0
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Today the Scottish Land Commission publishes its ScotLand Futures roadmap, setting out practical steps to reform how land is owned and used.

Three priorities:
🌱 Open up land opportunities
βš–οΈ Rebalance ownership power
🏘️ Put communities at the heart of decisions

buff.ly/6gz3izL
buff.ly/eKe4tOK

26.02.2026 09:01 πŸ‘ 6 πŸ” 4 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 1
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Women ♀ have held centre stage in historical land struggles and they very much continue to do so into modern Scottish land reform. Here, Grace Wright from the Isle of Skye feeds inspiration from archives into the land struggles of today: archive.org/details/plot...

@graceq22.bsky.social

25.02.2026 21:50 πŸ‘ 9 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 1

That I don't know, sorry. I (try to) specialise in land reform stuff rather than Scottish TV!

26.02.2026 08:55 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Villagers win legal battle in bid to buy the Albert β€œWe are delighted with this decision which so comprehensively demolishes the reasons given by the ministers for refusing the application.”

Some good coverage of an important ruling on the community right to buy to further sustainable development (found in Part 5 of the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2016) in a local paper.
www.dunfermlinepress.com/news/2588528...

26.02.2026 07:02 πŸ‘ 10 πŸ” 6 πŸ’¬ 2 πŸ“Œ 0
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Judge rules on breach of election law by Reform UK's Matt Goodwin A High Court judge has decide if Reform UK candidate Matt Goodwin should face sanctions over election leaflets that breached rules in the Gorton and Denton by-election

Reform succeed in application for relief over election leaflets lacking imprint. Court is satisfied it was an inadvertent error.

www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater...

25.02.2026 12:34 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0
Malcolm Combe: Testicular Cancer Misdiagnosed, Treated, and Fighting Back In this powerful episode of The Check One Two Podcast, we sit down with Malcolm Combe, a senior law lecturer whose life took an unexpected turn when he was misdiagnosed with a hernia. In reality, he h...

It's one year on from my appearance on The Check One Two Podcast (linked to the Cahonas Scotland charity), so here's me giving it an anniversary nudge. www.podbean.com/media/share/...

25.02.2026 11:26 πŸ‘ 2 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0
Irish Independent: Man stole three coffee machines in a week from Monaghan department store.

Irish Independent: Man stole three coffee machines in a week from Monaghan department store.

How does he sleep at night?

25.02.2026 09:14 πŸ‘ 3599 πŸ” 605 πŸ’¬ 98 πŸ“Œ 53
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Who Owns Scotland 2025 - Land Matters SCOTLAND’S CONCENTRATED PATTERN OF LANDOWNERSHIP CONTINUES TO GET WORSE Today I publish Who Owns Scotland 2025, the second annual report on landownership in Scotland. The first (Who Owns Scotland 2024...

Today I publish Who Owns Scotland 2025, an annual analysis of landownership across rural Scotland. The most significant finding is the continuing trend over past 15 years of fewer and fewer owners owning more and more of rural Scotland. andywightman.scot/2026/02/who-...

23.02.2026 08:12 πŸ‘ 67 πŸ” 51 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 2

Come and join us at the Commission!

Applications are now open for our 2026-27 Legal Assistant posts. You can find more information on our website: www.scotlawcom.gov.uk/about-us/wor...

The deadline is Thursday, 26 February 2026 at Noon.

Good luck 🀞

05.02.2026 10:03 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 3 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

I’m beginning every panel I chair for the rest of my career with this frontal attack…

10.02.2026 12:48 πŸ‘ 926 πŸ” 143 πŸ’¬ 9 πŸ“Œ 4
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09.02.2026 16:25 πŸ‘ 30 πŸ” 11 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Declarator of incompatibility for Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995, s 170 by Lord Lake in the Outer House

05.02.2026 16:27 πŸ‘ 4 πŸ” 3 πŸ’¬ 2 πŸ“Œ 1
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Gaelic and Community Relations Officer The successful applicant will work with colleagues from across the University, and with partners in other organisations, to undertake key projects that ensure that Gaelic is a visible language on our…

Tha Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann a' sireadh Oifigear Gàidhlig is Dàimhean Coimhearsnachd

05.02.2026 11:48 πŸ‘ 2 πŸ” 4 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Not that I want to predict the outcome of the forthcoming Holyrood election, but I am mildly amused that Reform might have to develop a policy on Scottish land reform, which in all likelihood is going to jar against the party name.

04.02.2026 10:07 πŸ‘ 2 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Mandelson told Epstein JPMorgan should β€˜threaten’ UK government over banker tax Then business secretary advised sex offender on how Jamie Dimon should lobby chancellor in 2009

crucial to remember here that Mandelson - who is shown trying to undermine the bank bonus tax in 2009 - went on to work for JP Morgan as a client of his Global Counsel advisory firm

www.ft.com/content/91e8...

01.02.2026 18:28 πŸ‘ 262 πŸ” 102 πŸ’¬ 14 πŸ“Œ 4
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BBC Radio 4 - Currently, RAAC and Ruin Karin Goodwin investigates RAAC in Scottish housing.

I was interviewed for this BBC Radio 4 programme, about the RAAC scandal affecting thousands of Scottish homes. My snippet - considering whether a purchaser of an afflicted home should have a remedy against a seller - starts about 15 minutes in. www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m...

01.02.2026 14:47 πŸ‘ 4 πŸ” 3 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

🏠 THREAD: Scotland faces a housing emergency. Are social landlords complying with equality & human rights laws?

Strathclyde Law School student Sarah McGoogan audited 169 landlords to find out.

The findings are eye-opening 🧡(1/5)

26.01.2026 13:34 πŸ‘ 3 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0
Equality and Human Rights in Scotland’s Social Housing Allocation Policies | University of Strathclyde

Our Human Rights Law LLM student Sarah McGoogan has written a blog post about whether social landlords are promoting equality and human rights law when allocating homes. www.strath.ac.uk/humanities/l...

24.01.2026 17:04 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
Monument consisting of stone arches and pillars on hilltop

Monument consisting of stone arches and pillars on hilltop

The Walkhighlands faithful tell me that this walk is the one to share with you today.

Full route and details: www.walkhighlands.co.uk/ullapool/fyr...

23.01.2026 09:29 πŸ‘ 79 πŸ” 13 πŸ’¬ 2 πŸ“Œ 0