MSPs underlined the importance of sea angling to the country during a debate on sea angling, held in Parliament yesterday and sparked by a motion from John Scott, MSP for Ayr and Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and the Environment.

Mr Scott, who had earlier welcomed sea angling organisations to the Parliament said despite its significance to many communities, angling was a subject that has been surprisingly overlooked by politicians.

“Ultimately, Scotland is blessed with an extremely rich marine environment which for different reasons has been abused over successive generations, and sea anglers have arguably borne the brunt of this more than most. We therefore have an obligation to re-write old wrongs, and in so doing restore our marine environment, so that stocks may thrive again, recreating the conditions where sustainable fishing – both recreational and commercial - can co-exist side by side.

“As my motion notes sea angling is hugely important to Scotland. It supports not only boat hire companies and tackle shops, but also a plethora of other businesses such as hotels, cafes and pubs in often fragile coastal communities.

“An estimated 225,000 residents participate in sea angling each year, and that figure does not include the many tourists who also come to fish.

“Research by Highlands and Islands Enterprise estimated that almost 80,000 UK residents visited the Highlands in 2003 to take part in sea angling, which they say supports over 400 full time equivalent jobs. And in terms of spend, SNH have suggested that boat anglers spend an average of £1,375, the equivalent figure for shore anglers being a not inconsiderable £861.

“As for the overall economic value of the sector, we await the forthcoming Glasgow Caledonian University study with interest. However it is worth noting that a similar study published by DEFRA calculated the total worth of the sector in England and Wales to be a possible £1.3 billion.

“The truth is that recreational sea angling is an activity we all should welcome, not simply because of its economic importance, but also because it represents the ultimate in sustainable, environmentally sound fishing. It causes no damage to the sea bed and the numbers of fish taken bear no threat to the viability of stocks.

“Indeed the sea angling community need take a back seat to no-one in their approach to conservation, and are actively promoting minimum catch sizes to ensure fish yet to breed are returned to the water.

“In light of their commitment to conservation, it is especially troubling to sea anglers – and, I trust, to us all – that many of the species of interest to anglers which were once regarded as abundant, are now either locally extinct or have been reduced to the point where only juvenile specimens are being landed."

Highland MSP John Farquhar Munro spoke of the importance of the sport to local tourist industries, and urged the Scottish Government to act to protect sea angling species from commercial fishing interests.

Speaking before the debate Mr Munro said: "We must recognise the economic importance of sea angling to the Highlands and Islands and do all we can to protect the declining stocks of sea angling species like the skate and the spurdog.

"The Government must take action to prevent the increased threat that commercial interests represent to sea angling species in light of fishing restrictions on commercial species.

"Responsible sea angling represents not only a vital economic asset to many small communities throughout Scotland, bringing in many thousands of pounds, but also a sustainable one and as such the Government must do all it can conserve and promote its continued growth."

www.fishupdate.com is published by Special Publications. Special Publications also publish FISHupdate magazine, Fish Farmer, the Fish Industry Yearbook, the Scottish Seafood Processors Federation Diary, the Fish Farmer Handbook and a range of wallplanners.

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