Born in 1946 and brought up in Cupar, Fife, I was educated at the local school - 
Banffshire and Buchan Coast MSP Stewart Stevenson said the draft Brexit deal fails to offer assurances on the future of the fishing industry.
As details of the Brexit deal were made public, concerns emerged regarding comments made by EU negotiator Michel Barnier about a future link between access for EU vessels to UK waters and tariff-free access for UK seafood suppliers to the EU market.
Commenting, SNP MSP Stewart Stevenson said:
“The proposed Brexit deal’s provisions on fishing fall very far short of what was promised and expected. They fail to offer assurances on the future of the industry.
“There are ominous signs that under this deal, participation in the customs union for fish products would be linked to access to Scottish waters and quota shares for EU boats, and that, in effect, we will remain in the CFP in all-but-name. This would be a bad deal for the fishing and processing sectors.
“Far from ‘taking back control’, the UK Government has shown that it’s prepared to hand over access to our waters once we leave the EU. My message to the UK Government is blunt: Don’t sell out fisheries again.”
“There are ominous signs that under this deal, participation in the customs union for fish products would be linked to access to Scottish waters and quota shares for EU boats, and that, in effect, we will remain in the CFP in all-but-name. This would be a bad deal for the fishing and processing sectors.
“Far from ‘taking back control’, the UK Government has shown that it’s prepared to hand over access to our waters once we leave the EU. My message to the UK Government is blunt: Don’t sell out fisheries again.”
