The report says that there should more regional control and a halt to discarding unwanted fish. Urgent changes are necessary to lead a “cultural shift” in fisheries management. The inquiry believes that such change would lead to a profitable and structurally diverse fishing industry in Scotland, which will inevitably be smaller that at present. Change should be there in the shape of the existing European regulatory framework under the Common Fisheries Policy, which has long been a source of criticism by both industry and the Scottish government.
Inquiry chairman Alan Campbell, a former chief executive of Aberdeenshire Council, said that next ten years going to be tough for the Scottish industry as it is likely to face greater uncertainty than at any time since the early 1980s in three key areas: the environment, the economy and the constitution. He added that the industry should take more responsibility for marine conservation, alongside other emerging interests.
Change should be not only in the industry but also the government and its policies. Change is needed so that the fishing community have a more active involvement in shaping legislation – and greater decision-making by the fishing community is one way of achieving our aims.”
Scottish fishing minister Richard Lochhead, who instigated the inquiry early in 2009, welcomed the “landmark” report. He said that this report will make a substantial contribution to the immediate debate on the future of EU fisheries policy and the long-term future of our fishing communities. The report also joins the Scottish government in calling for an end to the ’embarrassment’ of ‘hugely wasteful’ discards and emphasises the good sense of having fishing effort managed regionally rather than by Brussels, says Lochhead.
