I have kept track of the events on this estate for several years, knowing someone who works there, and have been horrified at the way the estate is managed- kept as a status symbol- or worse- by a Russian oligarch,Yuri Shefler. A quick ‘google’ will give an idea of what he represents. Though preferring not to rely on a rag like the Daily Mail- their interest in scandal is useful here (https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-12218817/Stoli-vodka-baron-conspired-Angelina-Jolie-womanizing-oligarch.html).
He is known for buying Brad Pitt’s beloved vineyard in France from Angleina Jolie in what Pitt considers to be an underhanded deal. He has been married to a number of women, supermodels, Miss World etc. When not operating his various businesses, he might be found on his super yacht and engaging in the usual pastimes for the rich. He is not in the good graces of Putin, however, and has given money to Ukraine, hence his welcome in Britain.
Schefler rarely comes to the estate- once in a while with guests for shooting- often with his ‘nieces’. The main shooting activity is pheasants- hardly the most challenging of game. The estate spends a lot of money buying in feed for these pheasants (often from abroad), and the keepers then work to train the pheasants to come when called.
Now it seems it is up for sale for 64 million! However, Andy Wightman , has shown in a recent blog post that it is not really up for sale! It is hard to grasp the complexities of the situation, the length these landowners will go to avoid transparency is beyond belief. The estate is not for sale but the shares in Tulchan Sporting Estate Ltd. are.
“Today, Tulchan Sporting Estates Ltd. is owned by SF Scottish Properties Ltd. a company registered in Guernsey which is in turn ultimately controlled by The Tulchan Trust also registered in Guernsey. Beyond that, it is impossible to find any public record of who the beneficiary of that Trust is (though presumably it is Yuri Shefler).
The implications of this are as follows.
The 100% shareholding by entities in Guernsey means that there will be no liability to Capital Gains tax. The shareholding was advertised at offers over £25 million in 2016 but we can’t know how much was paid for it as this transaction took place privately. At 24% CGT rates, a £67 million sale today would expose the seller to a liability of over £10 million.
The sale will not incur liability to Land and Buildings Transaction Tax as the estate is not being sold. The liability would otherwise be £3.3 million to Revenue Scotland.
As in 2017, the tenant farmers who have registered an interest in buying their farm should the landlord ever sell the estate will not have the opportunity to do so since their farms are not being sold. This loophole was drawn to the attention of MSPs in 2007.”
For more info see: https://andywightman.scot/2026/02/tulchan-estate-is-not-for-sale-again/
The Scottish Tenant Farmers Association, however, has called for this sale to be halted. It is a symbol of what is wrong with the land owning system- not used for the benefit of those who work the land, providing food and other environmental services, but as a status symbol and playground for billionaires. The Chairperson Christopher Nicholson is calling for the sale to be halted, claiming that the sale of shares is to prevent the owners from paying any tax.
He said: “This is a significant loophole which needs to be addressed, not just for the farm tenants and communities denied their pre-emptive rights, but also for Scottish and UK taxpayers who are funding the tax avoidance.
“With the shares of Tulchan Estate Company held offshore in Guernsey, the seller will avoid a HMRC capital gains tax liability of over £10m, if sold for £67m, and the buyer will not incur any land and building transaction tax.” (https://www.thenational.scot/news/25938030.row-erupts-highland-farmers-billionaire-estate-sale/
And according to The Farmers Guardian:
“The only investment in the tenanted holdings has been from the tenants themselves, with their families longer established on Tulchan than any of the short term owners who have come and gone over the last 50 years.
“It is only fair that these tenants are given the opportunity to negotiate over the sale of the Tulchan Estate.”
(https://www.farmersguardian.com/news/4526776/farm-tenants-urge-savills-delay-sale-67)
Outrage has been expressed also in the local papers and it looks to becoming a rallying cry for those who seek to ensure that land is used for the benefit of those who work it and the local community. Watch this space!
Land for What? Land for Whom? 