Scottish Conservative leader makes call to SNP during visit to North East Scotland seafood processors<\/p>\n
Scottish Conservative leader Russell Findlay has urged the Scottish Government to \u2018ease the squeeze\u2019 on the fishing industry by dropping its \u2018net zero fixation\u2019. He made his comments in Peterhead during a visit to Denholm Seafoods and Trinity Seafoods along with new North East Scotland MSP James Adams.<\/p>\n
The Scottish Conservatives say that spatial squeeze, quotas and difficulties in recruiting into the fishing and processing sectors were raised in discussions with sector leaders, including Scottish Seafood Association chief executive Jimmy Buchan, Denholm Seafoods managing director Richard Duthie, Seafood Ecosse managing director David Leiper and Scottish Seas and Trinity Seafoods director Bill McKenzie.<\/p>\n
Russell Findlay said he was grateful to hear directly from senior figures \u2018who understand their industry much better than civil servants\u2019.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor far too long they\u2019ve been treated very badly and largely ignored by governments in London and Edinburgh. The Scottish Conservatives will continue to champion fishing because we want to ensure a prosperous and sustainable future,\u201d he continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe SNP are in the grip of a costly net zero fixation, but they can\u2019t be allowed to cover the North Sea with massive turbines which would have a hugely detrimental impact on fishing grounds. This has the potential to cause a hammer blow to Scotland\u2019s coastal communities.\u201d<\/p>\n
A recent study led by Heriot-Watt University found that if all political commitments on offshore wind expansion are met, 11% of the North Sea could fall within wind farm boundaries by 2050, a significant increase on the 1% currently in place (FN, 18 June, \u2018Offshore wind could cover 11% of North Sea by 2050\u2019).<\/p>\n
Marine minister Jim Fairlietold Fishing News that the Scottish Government understood the challenges facing the fishing industry and \u2018concerns regarding the increasing pressure on marine space\u2019. Noting his recent visits to the North East, Shetland and the Western Isles, he said that he had been \u2018hearing directly from our fishing communities about the issues they face, and will continue to work closely with them to find the right balance that allows us to meet our climate obligations and protect coastal communities\u2019.<\/p>\n
The minister continued: \u201cIt is clear that our fishing communities have been let down by successive UK Governments. Brexit has had a devastating impact on Scotland\u2019s coastal and island communities, businesses and industries, bringing a loss of fishing opportunities for parts of our fleet, worsening labour shortages and introducing new trading barriers with the lucrative EU market.\u201d<\/p>\n
That \u2018betrayal\u2019 had, Jim Fairlie said, been exacerbated by the UK Government\u2019s decision to allocate only \u00a328m of the \u00a3360m Fishing and Coastal Growth Fund to Scotland, which he said was \u2018wholly inadequate and fails to reflect the scale and importance of Scotland\u2019s fishing industry\u2019.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Scottish Government will continue to be a responsible government, taking the necessary action to protect our environment and our coastal communities \u2013 not just today, but for future generations as well,\u201d he concluded.<\/p>\n
This\u00a0<\/strong>story<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0was taken from the latest issue of Fishing News. For further information on this story and for more reports on the UK and Irish commercial fishing sector, subscribe to Fishing News\u00a0<\/strong>here<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0or buy the latest single issue for just \u00a33.50\u00a0<\/strong>here<\/strong><\/a>.\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n