The Scottish Fishermen’s Federation (SFF) says that last night’s agreement between the EU and Norway on North Sea fish allocations for 2014 has ended months of uncertainty for Scottish fishermen.
The mackerel agreement provided the catalyst for the North Sea agreement to be quickly signed off, enabling Scottish fishermen to gain access into Norwegian waters with immediate effect.
Key points of the new agreement are a 5% increase in the North Sea cod quota, and 15% cuts for haddock, whiting and saithe in line with the long term management plan. However, transfer arrangements with Norway saw the cuts in haddock and whiting mitigated to 6% and 8% respectively. Plaice was increased by 15% and North Sea herring saw a small cut of 2%.
Bertie Armstrong, chief executive of the Scottish Fishermen’s Federation, said: “The months of delay in reaching this stage have been unprecedented, but we are relieved that this agreement has now been achieved, enabling our fishermen to plan ahead with greater confidence.”
Mr Armstrong said that Scottish fishermen had hoped for a bigger increase in the North Sea cod quota, but was relieved that the quota was not cut, as he said a cut would have led to fishermen dumping good quality marketable fish overboard, given the abundance of the stock.
