Fishermen threaten SNP ministers with legal action over plan to force them to land more catch in Scotland
Scotland's fishermen have threatened the SNP government with legal action if it presses ahead with a controversial plan to force them to land more of their catch in Scottish ports.
Fergus Ewing, the Rural Economy Minister, unveiled proposals that would mean Scottish trawlers would be refused a sea fisheries licence unless they agreed to land at least 55 per cent of their fish north of the Border.
But the Scottish Fishermen’s Organisation (SFO) told the Telegraph the move would cost pelagic fishermen thousands of pounds each as they would be prevented from selling their catch to processors in other countries that pay up to 20 per cent more.
John Anderson, the chief executive, warned he had legal advice that the move would contravene competition laws governing the EU single market by preventing them exporting their produce to other member states of the European Economic Area (EEA).
In a pointed attack on the SNP’s desire for an independent Scotland to join the EU, he questioned how this was consistent with wanting to ignore the basis of the single market and warned legal action would follow.
Relations between the SNP government and Scotland’s fishermen are already fraught thanks to Nicola Sturgeon’s fierce opposition to Brexit, which they hope will reinvigorate the industry.
Currently trawlers of more than 10m length can get a licence by making half their quota landings in the UK, having 50 per cent of their crew resident in the UK or by incurring half their operating expenditure in this country.
Mr Ewing argued that increasing the landings target to 55 per cent and limiting it to Scotland, rather than the entire UK, would help the Scottish fish processing industry.
For vessels landing pelagic fish, like herring and mackerel, the target will be lower at first, at 30 per cent, before increasing to 55 per cent by 2020.The new measures are proposed to come into effect on January 1, in four months’ time.
But the SFO argued this was akin to “robbing Peter to pay Paul” given the substantial loss fishermen would incur as a result. They can get between 15 per cent and 20 per cent more for their catch in countries such as Norway and Denmark.
Mr Anderson, whose organisation represents around a third of the pelagic fleet, said: “Our legal advice to date suggests that these proposals, which basically say land more fish to one of four factories or we are taking some quota away from you, go against the core economic principles of the EU and as such are likely to be incompatible with the laws of the EEA.”
He claimed Mr Ewing knows this but is pressing ahead anyway following “intense lobbying” from the fish processing industry. However, he warned the move “is going to be subject to legal challenge by fishermen.”
“Ultimately, the way the Government are going about this will make things worse, not better, and our fishermen have been asked to act in an entirely irrational manner which, unsurprisingly, is something they are unwilling to do,” he added.
The Scottish Government said that in 2015 landings of pelagic species by Scottish vessels were split between Scotland and overseas, with Norway being the main alternative landing country.
Outlining his plan, Mr Ewing said: “With the value of fish landed by Scottish vessels at a record high of £563 million, we need to make sure that the whole industry – whether that’s skippers, harbours, boat builders or fish processors - can benefit from this food and drink success story.
“A more secure supply will allow processing sectors to work more closely with the catching sector to plan and deliver investment for the future, which is essential to inclusive growth in our coastal communities.”
