SFF chief executive Bertie Armstrong said: "The report draws the general conclusion that EU Member States have been slow to reduce fleet capacity to match the available quota; the solution recommended is to leave the price of fuel to do its own decommissioning of the fleet through bankruptcy and also to direct any aid on additional decommissioning schemes.

"Neither the conclusion nor the solution makes any sense for Scotland - which has actually addressed overcapacity – a fact noted in the body of the report. Our salvation will lie in a mix of short, medium and long term measures.

"We must make a transition to a sustainable future, but do so in a way that retains an industry capable of accessing our wonderful natural resource. Being left to the wolves will certainly achieve a reduction in capacity, but it will be in the form of a collapse of areas of the industry plus the infrastructure and communities which support it."

www.fishupdate.com is published by Special Publications. Special Publications also publish 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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