Scapa Flow Historic Marine Protected Area - designation proposal: final business and regulatory impact assessment – 18 July 2025

Section 5: Next steps and implementation

Recommendations/preferred options

Option 2: designate the site as a Historic MPA

The recommended option is to designate an area of seabed amounting to 10.69 km^² within Scotland’s territorial waters as the Scapa Flow Historic MPA for the purpose of preserving nationally important marine historic assets located within the area in connection with Scapa Flow’s role as a naval harbour of outstanding strategic importance to the UK during two world wars.

This option takes forward the policy decisions approved by the Scottish Parliament in enacting the Marine (Scotland) Act 2010, and ensures a common approach to the protection of Scotland’s outstanding marine natural and cultural heritage, affording additional protection for this nationally important site to that currently available through local mechanisms (e.g. marine planning). Alignment with the marine planning/licensing system will, in time, help to minimise duplication of effort on consenting regimes and therefore costs to both industry and government.

The proposed designation includes an area of seabed where seven wrecks of the German High Seas Fleet are located that are currently designated as scheduled monuments. At HES’ consultation, there was no strong view either way as to whether the scheduling designation of these wrecks should be removed when the MPA comes into force, or if it should remain in place for a transition period of 1 year. On balance however, a 1 year period of transition is considered desirable to ensure that stakeholders have time to adapt to the new designation and to understand what it means.

Implementation considerations/plan

Following the detailed programme of stakeholder engagement and the consultations undertaken by both HES and the Scottish Government, the proposed designation of the Scapa Flow Historic MPA is expected on 1 November 2025.

Publication and notification procedures set out in section 75 and 76 of the 2010 Act will ensure that persons likely to be affected by the designation will be made aware of the resulting course of action.

Following designation, public authorities are required to adhere to the duties set out in the 2010 Act in relation to Historic MPAs (see sections 82-84).

Post implementation review

Anyone can ask HES to undertake a review of an existing Historic Marine Protected Area by completing our online application form. HES will review the existing

scheduled status of the seven wrecks within a year of the Historic MPA designation, with a view to removal of scheduled status at that stage.

Declaration

I have read the Business and Regulatory Impact Assessment and I am satisfied that it represents a fair and reasonable view of the expected costs, benefits and impact of the policy, and that these have been taken into account when making the policy decision. I am satisfied that business impact has been assessed with the support of businesses in Scotland.

I am also satisfied that officials have considered the impact on consumers as required by the Consumer Scotland Act 2020 in completion of the Consumer Duty section of this BRIA.

Signed:

Date: 23 July 2025

Minister's name: Gillian Martin

Minister's title: Cabinet Secretary for Climate Action and Energy

Scottish Government Contact point: Caroline Cowan, Deputy Director Marine Environment, Marine Directorate