Stevenson Welcomes Greater Flexibility On Days At Sea

Banff & Buchan MSP Stewart Stevenson has welcomed the Scottish Government’s plans to give skippers the choice of how to apply for days at sea, with the increased flexibility this will bring. The Scottish Government has been working with the industry to come up with the most effective means of allocating days at sea allocations following changes to EU regulations that mean national governments now receive a set amount of days at sea which they may then allocate to their fishing fleets.

Skippers will now be able to decide whether to apply using the rate-per-vessel-type system that has previously been in operation or alternatively they can apply based upon their historic track record. They will then be able to apply for additional days at sea, under the Scottish Government’s pioneering Conservation Credits Scheme.

Commenting, Mr Stevenson said:

“Although these are difficult times for Banff & Buchan’s fishing community, I welcome the fact that the Scottish Government has decided to offer skippers an increased level of flexibility in applying for their allocation of days at sea.

“The SNP Government is working closely with the fishing industry to try and make the best of a difficult situation and help our industry to be as profitable and sustainable as it can be under current restraints. The Conservation Credits Scheme which successfully convinced the EU not to cut the available days at sea is a clear example of this.

“However, as the European Commission has itself acknowledged, the Common Fisheries Policy is fundamentally flawed and needs to be completely replaced with a system that returns control to national governments. Working together, the Scottish Government and Scotland’s fishing industry have a far greater chance of developing a profitable, sustainable industry than the EU’s centralised decision making.

“A system where land-locked countries have a greater say on our fishing policy than Scotland does cannot continue, and the SNP will be pushing hard for an end to this ludicrous situation”.