Scotland's fisheries management strategy 2020 to 2030: delivery plan update 2025

Key areas of progress since 2020

1. Ongoing delivery of statutory and operational functions

We have continued to deliver our statutory and core functions and also to deliver on our domestic and international responsibilities. These include the setting of fishing opportunities and quota management, licensing of fishing vessels, international negotiations, as well as delivering our science and compliance functions.

In addition, we continue to invest more than £9 million a year in our world-leading marine science programme to ensure our stocks are fished at sustainable levels. Our investment also includes nearly £22 million a year in our enforcement activity. This helps deliver confidence and accountability in our sea fisheries which in turn supports a positive brand and marketplace for Scottish seafood.

During the 2024 international fisheries negotiations, we secured over £600 million in fishing opportunities for 2025, with our team of negotiators seeking to secure optimal fishing opportunities at sustainable levels for the fleet. We have continued to work with our Coastal State partners to progress longer time management priorities, including improving the evidence base for key stocks in Scottish sea basins, and working towards agreeing sharing arrangements, updated management models, and management plans.

In 2023, new Economic Link licence conditions were introduced requiring Scottish vessels targeting the species of greatest value to Scotland to land a minimum percentage into Scotland or provide quota for distribution to other sections of the industry. Early indications are that this helped drive record landing values into Scotland for 2023. Landings of pelagic stocks into Scotland are expected to expand in 2025 generating greater onshore prosperity.

2. Funding

Since its launch in 2021, over £55 million in total grant funding has been awarded through the Marine Fund Scotland (MFS), this enabled £120 million of investment.

In the sea fisheries sector funding has:

• delivered investment in science and innovation, investigating alternative fuels for fishing vessels, data collection and selectivity improvements
• assisted young fishers to own their first vessel or take a share in a vessel, and improved health and safety in the Scottish fleet
• promoted the high-quality seafood we produce in domestic and international markets, supporting recovery of this valuable industry from the impacts of Brexit.

3. Delivery of technical, management and environmental improvements

In 2022 we consulted on the use of Remote Electronic Monitoring (REM) in key parts of the fishing fleet. The outcome report was published in Summer 2023. Following on from the successful voluntary rollout of REM to the scallop dredge fleet, legislation to introduce mandatory REM to both the scallop dredge and pelagic fishing fleets was passed by the Scottish Parliament in June 2024.

Our work to introduce REM, sits alongside the planned rollout of vessel tracking and monitoring across under 12 metre fleet, which will help deliver a high quality and rich data set and provide us with a stronger evidence base from which to make informed decisions. We have been working with industry to trial devices for smaller vessels and have consulted on our proposals. We expect to publish the consultation outcome report in 2025.

Also, in 2022 we consulted on the Future Catching Policy, which is intended to deliver technical improvements to drive improved sustainability, and to deal with operational challenges associated with implementation of the landing obligation. Following on from the consultation we have a series of workshops with stakeholders which will allow us to develop policy proposals using a co-management approach. The Consultation analysis and report are complete and can be found here.

In 2023, we consulted on a prohibition of fishing for sandeels in Scottish waters to provide long term sustainability and resilience to the marine ecosystem as well as bringing about potential benefits to sandeel, seabirds, marine mammals and other fish species. The Sandeel (Prohibition of Fishing) (Scotland) Order 2024 came into force on 26 March 2024, which closed all Scottish waters to fishing for sandeel, for all vessels.

We have embarked on the development of 21 Scottish-led Fisheries Management Plans (FMPs), with a further FMP under joint development with Defra, for key demersal, pelagic and Nephrops stocks, along with feeding into a wider cross-UK programme of work for delivery of the full suite of FMPs as required under the UK JFS. Work to extend the deadline for delivering the Scottish-led plans was completed in 2024, and the FMPs will now be in place by the end of 2026. We are also working with Seafish on a scoping exercise to determine key non quota species that should be considered for FMPs.

4. Inshore management and improvements

Our approach to co-management has been key to our transition towards more agile management of inshore fisheries. Working with the Regional Inshore Fisheries Groups (RIFGs) and through the Fisheries Management and Conservation Group (FMAC), interim management measures were introduced in May 2024 to help ensure the sustainability of our crab and lobster fisheries.

These measures include:

• prohibition on landing of egg-bearing crab and lobster into Scotland
• controls on creel fishing vessels of more than 12 meters overall with a track record of landing more than 200 tonnes of crab and / or lobster in any 12 month period since 2020.

These interim measures are the first step in our overarching Inshore Fisheries Management Improvement (IFMI) Programme through which we will transition management of our inshore fisheries to a more agile and regionally focussed model that captures the nuances and variations of Scotland’s inshore seas.

The IFMI Programme was developed in 2024 in response to stock assessment advice and stakeholder concern which emphasised sustainability issues with our crab and lobster stocks. The process of developing a suite of interim measures in partnership with our stakeholders to improve sustainability of these fisheries highlighted that a number of management options may benefit from some form of regional variation. This was echoed by evidence given to the Rural Affairs and Islands (RAI) Committee in the Scottish Parliament in September 2024, which reinforced that a more discrete, localised approach to fisheries management carries many benefits. In addition, it has become clear that a stronger co-management approach would benefit management of our inshore fisheries more widely. The Scottish Government is therefore keen to explore how a new framework for inshore fisheries management could ultimately coalesce with delivery of Scotland’s Fisheries Management Plans, along with wider objectives and commitments.

We published a call for evidence for our IFMI Programme between 26 November 2024 and 18 February 2025 inviting stakeholder expertise to help us understand what is needed to build a stronger framework to deliver improved inshore fisheries management, with a view to consultation on a final policy proposal in late 2025.

5. Marine Protected Areas (MPAs)

The ongoing programme to rollout fisheries management measures in Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and for Priority Marine Features (PMFs) will help deliver additional protections for benthic habitats and key marine species. We have committed to delivering these measures as soon as possible and complete the work to apply protections within the Scottish MPA network.

MPAs complement other restrictions or prohibitions of fishing activity such as spawning closures. This approach helps to ensure sustainable use of our marine environment, protecting biodiversity and ensuring healthy functioning ecosystems.

A consultation on fisheries management measures in offshore MPAs seeking views and comments on fisheries management options for 20 protected areas in the offshore marine region was held between 19 August and 14 October 2024. A similar consultation on inshore MPAs will be brought forward in due course. We are also considering additional protection for 11 Priority Marine Features (PMFs) most vulnerable to bottom contacting fishing gear outside of MPAs to complement the MPA network.

There are 74 sites within the inshore marine region and 20 sites within the offshore marine region for which fisheries management measures are being developed through engagement with stakeholders. Additionally, over 90 discrete sites for protection of Priority Marine Features from mobile bottom contacting fishing gear are being considered.

6. Co-management

Applying the principle of co-management and working in partnership continues to be key to delivering our FFM Strategy.

In January 2023 we brought our Fisheries Management and Conservation (FMAC) group into a more strategic space to help us to deliver the FFM Strategy and the key policies and actions within it. FMAC has been operating as a ‘hub and spoke’ model, supplemented by a number of technical and issues specific subgroups.

The transition of FMAC as a group has posed a number of challenges, particularly given the range of interests our stakeholder groups cover and the diverse views often present in discussions. Whilst we expect all participants in FMAC to provide positive input around the table in a safe space, with respect and transparency, this has sometimes proven difficult to deliver in practice. With that in mind, we undertook a review of FMAC during 2024 to check how the new structure is working in practice.

Going forward we will be trialling a new approach to our co-management which will see the main FMAC group split into two groups (industry and eNGOs) and not meeting together unless with agreement from members. This will ensure that we have a productive space for co-management discussions to take place, and that we can take into account a range of different views in policy development and delivery. This approach will be mirrored for the FMAC Inshore subgroup, although some discussions under the Future Catching Policy (FCP) and Climate Change subgroups may continue to operate in a mixed space.