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Listen
"Scotland is situated at the centre of some of the most productive fishing grounds in the world and we are one of Europe's most important fishing nations. Scotland's fishing industry has a long and proud past and sea fishing has always been a part of Scottish life. That remains the case today where fishing is the economic mainstay of many of our most remote and fragile rural communities."
A Sustainable Framework for Scottish Sea Fisheries, 2005
An Action Plan ...from net to plate
Introduction
The words opposite opened the Scottish Executive's Sustainable Framework for Scottish Sea Fisheries, published in 2005, which set out a strategy to develop a sustainable, profitable and well-managed future for the sector. The Sea Fisheries Advisory and Reference Group ( SeaFAR) was set up to develop this vision and help turn it into a reality. We in SeaFAR have drawn on our diverse experience and viewpoints to develop an action plan to achieve this. This document affirms the vision to which we all subscribe, outlines the actions we have agreed upon unanimously with the Executive, reports on progress to date, and outlines a plan for the next 3 years. Crucially, this vision and these actions are not exclusively the Executive's but have been developed and agreed by us all.
Our work on the Framework is based on two important beliefs. First that the sea fisheries sector is of continuing importance to Scotland - underlined so strongly by the warmth of the public's response to the recent TV series "Trawlermen" - and second that we can help shape a better future for those currently in the industry and for future generations.
There is a view that diminishing fishing opportunities, overcapacity, rising costs and increased global competition necessarily bring the future of the Scottish sea fisheries sector into question. The different sectors of the industry vary hugely in terms of the prospects for the stocks they depend on and the markets within which they operate. It is true that there are acute short term difficulties in some parts of the industry and it is vital that those sectors in trouble survive in the short term as well as seeking the means to secure their long term future. However, the overall picture is more encouraging. Our analysis is that many sectors of the Scottish industry are profitable and successful, the majority of our important fish stocks are managed according to international best practice standards for sustainability and the people in the industry are resilient and resourceful.
The industry does have good prospects but it also faces significant challenges and a new approach is needed to overcome these. We recognise that there are considerable opportunities in moving the focus from net to plate, in order to capitalise on the increasing consumer demand for fish and make it one of Scotland's high quality food products. We also recognise that this can only be achieved by living within the environmental limits of what can be caught which will in turn maintain stability of supply to the market and steward the health and biodiversity of the seas on which the industry depends.
We need to manage the stocks in a way that maximises prosperity into the long term and which creates an environmental and fisheries management reputation to be proud of. We also need to find new ways to reduce costs and maximise profits from a healthy, natural product in great demand. Finally, the industry and government need to work hand in hand to generate the conditions for compliance.
We cannot do this in isolation from the international context. Almost all of the fish stocks of interest to Scotland are shared by other countries. We must manage the fisheries in partnership with these countries, and play an active role in improving these international frameworks, particularly the EU's Common Fisheries Policy, both in the short-term and in the run-up to the CFP review due in 2012. Scotland also has international commitments to nature conservation and sustainable development commitments that need to be respected in the way our fisheries are managed. However our actions in Scotland are just as important in determining our fishing future. By setting out a strong vision of what we want to achieve and showing leadership through our actions at home we can take the lead on the international stage.
This document shows how to achieve a sustainable, profitable and well-managed industry through detailed actions and gives an achievable timescale for delivery. The action plan will of course evolve over time, but we believe it represents a valuable programme of work. Above all, it is a collaborative programme of work because all of us on SeaFAR and all the interests we represent have to work together with one another and with government if we are to realise the vision of the Sustainable Framework and to secure a thriving future for Scottish sea fisheries.
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