Scotland's future catching policy - selectivity proposals consultation 2026: partial BRIA

Introduction

Scotland’s rich and diverse seas have given rise to a significant number of domestic and international fishing vessels operating around the coast of Scotland, focussed on harvesting a healthy, nutritious source of food for both domestic and international markets.

Fishing vessels target different species depending on their type and area of operation. Some are involved in single-species fisheries (e.g. mackerel, lobster, or Nephrops), while others participate in mixed fisheries. For instance, in the demersal whitefish sector, boats aiming to catch haddock often also land other species like cod and hake. The diversity of species caught, combined with the range of fishing techniques and complex regulatory framework, makes fisheries management complex. Increasingly, effective management requires tailored approaches at the fleet and operational level, rather than a broad, one-size-fits-all approach.

As fisheries managers, it is a key priority that fishing activities in Scottish waters are conducted in a sustainable and responsible manner. Many of the current rules and regulations supporting fisheries management have been shaped over time through collaborative efforts among fisheries authorities, both within the UK and internationally.

To ensure fishing activity stays within sustainable limits, it is essential for fisheries managers to monitor, understand, and regulate how much fish is being caught. The introduction of the Landing Obligation, introduced through the EU’s Common Fisheries Policy and now part of assimilated UK law, was designed to reduce the amount of unwanted fish being discarded. While it has helped reduce discards, putting it into practice has been challenging, especially in mixed fisheries, where fishers often catch several species at once. Ongoing efforts are needed to improve transparency, ensure all catches are reported, and build trust in the system. This is key to managing fisheries sustainably and protecting marine ecosystems.

In addition to the management measures used to manage fishing activity in relation to fish stocks, there are wider environmental and ecosystem issues that need to be managed in our marine space. This includes the range of management measures in place and in development which help to address bycatch and entanglements of sensitive marine species, including cetaceans, seals and seabirds, that can occur as part of fishing activity. These combined measures are an important part of ensuring that Scotland has a healthy and sustainable marine ecosystem.

The Future Catching Policy (FCP) is a key component of the Scottish Government's Fisheries Management Strategy. ^[1] It is a key policy underpinning our wider approach to sustainable fishing in Scotland and plays an important role in wider marine spatial management and planning as part of a package of measures including fisheries management measures in Marine Protected Areas (MPAs).

An important focus of the FCP is addressing the issue of discarding of unwanted fish catch and bycatch of sensitive marine species. To support this, we have been looking at improvements we can make to selectivity, such as gear configuration and spatial measures, so that fishers can reduce or avoid, where possible, unwanted fish catch and bycatch of sensitive marine species in the first place increasing sustainability in fishing activity.

This builds upon the existing technical conservation measures that fishers must abide by. It is crucial for fisheries managers to continually review and refine existing regulations as this ongoing evaluation helps ensure that the rules remain effective, relevant, and capable of driving meaningful improvements where necessary.

The FCP will also help support progresses towards delivering Good Environmental Status. The Marine Strategy Regulations 2010^[2](SI 2010/1627) require the Scottish Ministers when exercising certain functions to take the necessary measures to achieve or maintain good environmental status (GES) in UK waters. The UK Marine Strategy Parts 1-3^[3](UKMS) is a series of strategy documents published in compliance with Marine Strategy Regulations 2010 to set out the UK’s framework for assessing, monitoring and taking action to achieve GES. It is a key pillar of marine policy in the UK.

A key factor in furthering our progress towards achieving GES will be the application of the fisheries objectives within the Fisheries Act 2020^[4]. This is the fundamental piece of legislation which will facilitate achieving GES for Descriptors 1 and 4 for fish in UK seas and other relevant descriptors for seals, birds and cetaceans in the UK MS Part Three (Programme of Measures). The Joint Fisheries Statement sets out how we will achieve the fisheries objectives set out in the Fisheries Act 2020 and contribute to the delivery of GES.

The FCP, in line with supporting commitments made in Section 4.2.8 of the Joint Fisheries Statement^[5], will assist the Scottish Government in delivering the sustainability objective; the bycatch objective; the ecosystem objective, specifically in relation to minimising incidental catches of sensitive species; and, the scientific evidence objective. The FCP will deliver on these objectives by focusing on the reduction of discarding of unwanted catch via a suite of technical and spatial selectivity measures.

This partial BRIA describes the anticipated economic impact of the proposed selectivity proposals on the fishing sector and associated businesses.

This assessment is being undertaken alongside a public consultation on FCP selectivity proposals, and further information is sought there regarding additional economic evidence to update this assessment before finalising selectivity measures.