Salmond defends quota rights move
‘Once transferred it neVer comes back’
Published:
A SHOCK ban on fishermen selling off quota rights to vessels outside Scotland was defended by First Minister Alex Salmond yesterday on the grounds that once lost they “never come back”.
The Scottish Government “unilaterally” imposed the moratorium five days before launching a consultation on the management of the country’s catch allowances.
The move sparked a cross-border row, with fisheries ministers accusing each other of “scaremongering” and “tearing up longstanding agreements”.
UK Fisheries Minister Jonathan Shaw suggested the proposals might not be legal and would bring “risk and uncertainty” to fishermen.
Industry leaders were also hostile to the ban.
North-east Labour MSP Richard Baker called on Mr Salmond to reveal the legal advice the government received on whether such a ban was competent.
shadow
Mr Baker asked him: “How would he respond to Mike Park, of the Scottish White Fish Producers Association, who criticised the move in the Press and Journal, and to Barry Deas of the National Federation of Fishermen’s Organisations, who said the ban had ‘cut the value of Scottish quota’?”
The first minister replied that the English fishing industry was a “shadow of its former self” due to the sale of fishing quotas to France, Spain and Holland.
“When fishing quota is transferred out of fishing communities, it never comes back again,” he said.
“I'm not sure that Richard Baker understands that, but if he had represented a fishing community for 20 years he would know it. I could cite the producer organisations of Scotland who are thoroughly behind quota policy review.”
Mr Salmond claimed the “most celebrated fisherman in Scotland” – Jimmy Buchan, owner of the Amity, which featured in the BBC TV series Trawlermen – was behind him.
He quoted Mr Buchan as saying: “The future of Scotland’s fishing communities and the industry that sustains them depends crucially on the fleet having access to quota.
“With fuel costs at a level which is beginning to threaten viability of the vessels, action has to be taken to reduce the other costs vessels have to bear.
“We welcome this important step by the Scottish Government as it will help reduce the loss of quota for active fishermen and sustain the communities in which they live.”
