Meeting of the Parliament 02 May 2023
I apologise to Brian Whittle. I was being distracted by somebody else.
Presiding Officer,
“This is a crucial next step to aid marine ecosystem recovery in our waters and I’m delighted to see my recommendations become a reality today. Not only will the first of these Highly Protected Marine Areas protect important species and habitats, but they will propel the UK forward in our mission to protect at least 30% of the global ocean by 2030.”
That was said by the Minister for Biosecurity, Marine and Rural Affairs, Lord Benyon—a Tory—on the HPMAs for England. [Interruption.] I will continue, because I need to use the time.
If we do not take action, fish stocks will continue to suffer, making it harder and harder to earn a living as a fisher. In addition, losing the flood defences that are provided by healthy coastal habitats would cost billions.
Shetland’s fisheries are faring better than most, but other coastal communities are realising that the collapse of fish stocks—not an increase in protection—is what threatens coastal economies.
It is time for communities to step up and demand change. In the coming months, coastal and island communities can continue to shape the ocean recovery network of our highly protected marine areas. The cabinet secretary will hold meetings and workshops. Marine Scotland assured me that coastal communities will be central when they
“get together in a room with maps and … draw the thing out in a very collective manner”.
There will be a second public consultation on locations, and anyone will be able to submit proposals for sites.
We should go further. We need a process for communities to meaningfully input into wider spatial plans for their inshore waters, which could include HPMAs as part of a package of measures that works for each community.
It is about that whole package. Fishing is indispensable, but it makes up just 6 per cent of marine economic value and 7 per cent of marine employment. Our coastal economies are a rich tapestry. They include recreation, hospitality, tourism, shipping and the increasingly growing sector of nature restoration. Many of those will benefit from HPMAs, as in Arran, where the Lamlash bay no-take zone has increased both tourism and lobster catches near the HPMA—and where, we also hear, the general ecosystem is flourishing.
Lamlash bay is demonstrating multifaceted benefits from high protection. It should be recognised and funded as a formal pilot. However, we can also draw on ample international evidence, including benefits for fishers outside HPMAs in California, Florida, New Zealand and the Mediterranean, where the fishers asked for them to be brought in.
HPMAs have piqued public interest in marine management. We should seize the opportunity to catalyse a process of community wealth building all along our coastlines.
Through careful co-design and management with our coastal communities, we can create world-famous HPMAs, where visitors and residents alike enjoy the beautiful, nature-rich waters, from which the benefits literally spill over for local fishers and the ecosystems on which we all depend.
17:53