Time to turn tide and safeguard our creel fishing fleet

As Scottish government proposals propel marine environmental protection to the forefront of politics, the debate’s deep roots in a history of mismanagement cannot be ignored. Plans to create Highly Protected Marine Areas (HPMAs) covering at least 10 per cent of our seas have drawn heavy criticism from inshore fishermen worried for their future, as voiced by the Celtic band Skipinnish in a moving protest song. As one fisherman told me: “We are fighting for our survival”.

Despite all the major opposition political parties sharing similar manifesto commitments to HPMAs, there has been a surge of politicking. Some claim HPMAs would mean “all fishing and every associated job . . . wiped at the stroke of a bureaucrat’s pen”, as the proposals act as a lightning