Dozens of Scottish prawn boats could soon be exempt from days at sea regime.
Almost 70 West Coast fishing boats are set for a much-needed boost after the European Commission accepted that they should be exempt from days at sea restrictions.
Working with fishermen, the Scottish government has been fighting to have West Coast vessels that catch very little or no cod exempt from EU restrictions. If approved at December Council, this hoped for breakthrough means that 67 Scottish fishing boats that fish for prawns in the Minch and the Clyde will no longer be subjected to days at sea limits.
Fisheries secretary Richard Lochhead said: 'This has been a long drawn out process and we are therefore delighted that our determined efforts appear to have paid off. I am sure that other EU Member States will now agree to the exemption of many of our West Coast prawn boats. We will work with the vessels involved to make sure that they continue to catch less than 1.5 per cent cod.
'Working with the industry and our scientists we produced a sensible case to get Scottish boats out of the regime where they clearly do not impact on cod. Hopes have been raised and then dashed before but, through our efforts, we now expect Scotland to benefit from an exemption already granted to other Member States like Spain and Sweden.
'Of course our fight for a fair deal for Scotland's fishermen does not stop here. While our valuable prawn fleets are no longer facing the prospect of new draconian technical measures in 2010, and changes to fishing gear that would have impacted on both viability and safety have been averted, there is still much to do.
'We will continue to work hard to cut our fishermen some much-needed slack. We are determined to fight for measures that will ensure sustainable whitefish fleets and protect our valuable Nephrops fisheries. Any solutions must fit with our circumstances, not the convenience of Brussels.'
Scottish Fishermen's Federation chief executive Bertie Armstrong, said: 'This has been a long battle on a matter of very important principle - vessels which don't catch cod should not be trapped inside regulation which doesn't apply to them. The Scottish government is to be congratulated on its refusal to let this matter drop; persistent detailed work over the course of the year in presenting the scientific case has at last been acknowledged. The final regulation is to be signed off in December and we must await the fine print, but I don't think the Scottish government could have tried harder once the problem was recognised.'
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