Chamber and committees

The data which Marine Scotland has analysed to determine the general trend in average sea lice numbers per fish in recent years is monthly data which has been published by the Scottish Salmon Producers Organisation via their website and which has been in the public domain. The full historic data set is no longer available on that media and therefore we will make our data set available on Marine Scotland’s NMPi website. Analyses of data has been published in two papers in relation to different time periods; ‘ Describing temporal change in adult female
Lepeophtheirus salmonis abundance on Scottish farmed Atlantic salmon
at the national and regional levels. L.M. Hall and A.G. Murray (2018) and A preliminary assessment of indirect impacts on aquaculture species health and welfare in Scotland during COVID-19 lockdown. Murray et al (2021).

The average sea lice numbers per fish per year can be summarised as follows:

The aim of Highlands and Islands Airports Limited’s (HIAL) Air Traffic Management 2030 Strategy (ATMS) Project is to ensure the continuation of air services in the medium to long term, which in turn helps secure the economic prosperity of remote and rural communities. The cessation of air services would have a devastating impact on these communities and we have a responsibility to act now to ensure their continuation.

Through engagement with their staff, trade union representatives and other stakeholders HIAL are doing everything possible to mitigate the impact of posts moving to Inverness. In consultation with Prospect, HIAL are developing a relocation policy and a commuting policy to support their staff and local communities.

HIAL has recently recruited staff for two new posts based at Kirkwall Airport which will support the Sustainable Aviation Test Environment (SATE) Project. The SATE Project will create the UK’s first operationally-based, low-carbon aviation test centre at Kirkwall Airport in support of our aim to make the Highlands and Islands the world’s first net-zero aviation region by 2040.

HIAL have also proposed a centre of Aerodrome Flight Information Service (AFIS) excellence in Benbecula. This will not only retain all jobs locally but has the potential for further employment in the area. There is also associated economic benefits with increased footfall for the local community in accommodation and associated trade as it establishes itself as a UK training centre for AFIS operations.

HIAL will continue to explore where its operations can create more economic activity for our island communities. They intend to commission an independent study to identify where that can be done.

Marine Scotland are currently in close dialogue with NatureScot and other interested parties in order to address outstanding objections raised through public consultation on the proposed Special Protection Areas in Orkney. A Ministerial announcement is expected once these concerns are addressed.

I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-36147 on‎ 22 March 2021 for details of the groups which Scottish Government consulted with.

This allowed Scottish Government officials to engage with the groups representing mobile fishing, static fishing, scallop diving, recreational diving, military activities, aquaculture and regulation of infrastructure and construction. Scottish Government is the regulator for marine waste disposal.

All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx

Scottish Government officials undertook a series of stakeholder engagement meetings. Although consultation is not necessary when using urgent powers within the Marine (Scotland) Act 2010, these meetings allowed local stakeholders to be involved in shaping the proposals.

Scottish Government met with representatives from the Scottish Creel Fishermen’s Federation, Scottish Fishermen’s Federation, Community Inshore Fisheries Alliance, Scottish Whitefish Producer’s Association, West Coast Regional Inshore Fisheries Group, Scottish Salmon Producer’s Organisation, Marine Conservation Society, local recreational divers, Scottish Environmental Protection Agency, Highland Council, and Ministry of Defence. Minutes from these meetings [are/will be] available online here: https://www.gov.scot/policies/marine-environment/marine-protected-areas/ .

The feedback from these stakeholders was used to inform the Scottish Ministers’ decision.

NatureScot provided the Scottish Government with advice on the flapper skate nursery area on 26 October and 18 December 2020. This advice is published here: https://www.gov.scot/publications/protection-flapper-skate-naturescot-advice-scottish-government-regarding-flapper-skate-eggs-inner-sound/ .

The Scottish Government took account of the advice from NatureScot and views from stakeholders in deciding which activities to prohibit within the Red Rocks and Longay MPA. NatureScot’s advice states that skate eggs are sensitive to a number of activities including creel fishing, demersal mobile fishing gear, diver egg collection or disturbance, aquaculture and anchoring. In considering this advice and feedback from stakeholders, the Scottish Ministers have decided to take a precautionary approach to protecting the flapper skate egg nursery by prohibiting all activities capable of affecting the eggs, regardless of the magnitude of potential impacts.

The Visitor Management Group published a series of actions on 19 March that the Scottish Government and its agencies will take to support rural visitor management in 2021.

This includes increasing the Rural Tourism Infrastructure Fund to £6.2m in 2021-22 and the introduction of a one off £2.75m fund to be managed by NatureScot that will support temporary measures for the 2021 summer season. This will include, for example, support for temporary toilets and ranger posts.

Given the breadth of involvement in this work it has been hard to achieve a comprehensive overview of all of the actions that are being implemented this summer. More detail on the strategic and operational actions being taken forward can be found on the Visitor Management section of VisitScotland’s website through this link: https://www.visitscotland.org/about-us/what-we-do/working-in-partnership/visitor-management-plan .

The Modernisation of the Inshore Fishing Fleet Programme will equip our commercial inshore fleet with appropriate and proportionate vessel monitoring and tracking systems. The Programme is part of our recently published Fisheries Management Strategy 2020-2030 which sets out our policy initiatives to protect the environment, and support a strong, sustainable and resilient fishing industry.

• At present over 30% of Scottish scallop dredge vessels are fitted with remote electronic monitoring (“REM”) systems, including cameras. We have been clear that legislation will be introduced - by the end of 2021 - to make the technology mandatory. Voluntary installations are ongoing but have inevitably suffered some delay due to Covid-19.
• As part of the Outer Hebrides Inshore Fisheries Pilot, close to 40 creel vessels have now been equipped with a with a low-cost tracking solution, which will report vessel position and provide feedback that accurately assesses fishing activity. This will test our ability to manage creel fishing effort within a significant area of sea and inform the wider deployment of tracking technology across the inshore fleet, planned to commence later this year.
• In addition, the vessels currently authorised to harvest razor clams are required to have a bespoke REM system on board.

A just transition to a net zero economy will be a fundamental component of green ports in Scotland and offshore wind will have a critical role to play in that transition as we work towards delivering up to 11 GW by 2030 and net zero in 2045.

The ScotWind leasing process is an important step in the development of offshore wind and achievement of our long-term goals. Scottish Government have discussed with Crown Estate Scotland the policy implications flowing from the ScotWind leasing round. In taking forward ScotWind, Crown Estate Scotland will be seeking to support objectives related to green ports, our Hydrogen Action Plan and the growth of the offshore wind sector and supply chain.

The environmental impacts of aquaculture largely depend on the circumstances in which the fish are produced and regulated, and on both, I can confirm that we have one of the most rigorous regulatory regimes in the world.

The Scottish Government and its agencies continue to work effectively with the farmed salmon sector and others to make improvement in key areas as highlighted by the recent Parliamentary Inquiries. We support the sustainable growth of Scottish aquaculture while maintaining the right balance across our economic, environmental and social responsibilities.

Salmon farming is a vital sector for Scotland and a key component of our Blue Economy. It is our number one food export and creates many thousands of highly paid, highly skilled jobs, many of which are in our most remote and fragile coastal communities.