Hansard

I, too, congratulate Beatrice Wishart on her speech and on her support for the fishing industry. Indeed, she is following in the tradition of her predecessor, Tavish Scott, who championed the industry’s interests for many a year. Four minutes for a speech is very short, and I agree that there should be a proper debate. If there is not, that would be a bit of a slap in the face for our fishermen.

The magnitude of the challenges that face the sector now is serious, particularly in the case of some of the inshore fleets. I do not have time to address the issues relating to the demersal or pelagic fisheries, important though they are. Mr Ross made several points that I agree with, as did Rhoda Grant.

Some inshore fleets are in a parlous state. Elaine Whyte has told me that, as far as the Clyde goes, the decline is at a tipping point. Ten years ago, there were 66 trawlers, but now only 14 are active. One was lost this week, three are up for sale and many skippers face retirement.

We sometimes talk about fishing as if things have been the same for ever, but the challenges that the industry faces are absolutely enormous. That is why it is important that we have more time to debate them.

One of the key problems is that, contrary to some people’s impression, large chunks of the sea are designated areas that cannot be fished.

I will make two points. First, the method of assessing the economic impact of proposed MPAs and other designated areas is seen by fishermen as deeply flawed and as completely failing to take account of the magnitude of what has happened. The figures that I have quoted about the declining fleet tend to give credence to that.

Secondly, there should surely be a review of the efficacy of what we have done already before we go on to do even more. It is madness to create more designations unless we know how the existing ones are performing.

The best conservation measures are often those that are proposed by the likes of Duncan Macinnes of the Western Isles Fishermen’s Association, or his equivalents in Mallaig, on the Clyde, in Pittenweem and all around our coast.

I am talking just about inshore fishing because I do not have time to do anything else in this speech. Why do we not listen more to fishermen? As Rhoda Grant said, they feel that they are the forgotten tribe in our rural economy.

I suggest to the Scottish Government—although it is a bit late now because it has had four years to do this—that there should be a review of the effect of the MPAs and an independent analysis of how we assess their economic impact. The current system does not work. I hoped that that review would happen in my time, but we never quite got there.

I have here the strategy. I promise that I am not planning to tear it up, not least because I wrote the document but also because it would be out of order to do so. Scotland’s fisheries management strategy, which was produced in 2020, sets out 12 action points. I cannot go into them all now, but they are designed to promote fishing—not to regulate, challenge, ban or restrict it. Surely, five years on, it is time to have a review of the strategy.

In conclusion, in the 10 seconds that I have left, I note that Scotland’s fishermen are close to the hearts of most people in Scotland. They are part of our DNA and they deserve our respect and support. I hope that the cabinet secretary will answer some of the points that I have made.