Question reference: S6W-01639
- Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
- Date lodged: 20 July 2021
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Current status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 26 August 2021
Question
To ask the Scottish Government what steps are being taken to protect marine wildlife from the impact of jet skiers (a) near Wardie Bay, Edinburgh, and (b) around Scotland's coastline.
Answer
The Scottish Government is committed to protecting Scotland’s marine wildlife. The current regulatory framework provides a high level of individual and site based protection measures for our iconic marine wildlife with processes in place to ensure that action can be taken where required. It is an offence to deliberately or recklessly disturb European protected species, including whales, dolphins and porpoises. Under the Animals and Wildlife (Penalties, Protections and Powers) (Scotland) Act 2020 these offences could result on summary conviction, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months or a fine not exceeding £40,000 (or both) or on conviction on indictment, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 5 years or a fine (or both).
The Scottish Marine Wildlife Watching Code provides advice on how to minimise disturbance to marine wildlife, when enjoying the Scottish coast. We would encourage anyone watching or encountering marine wildlife to follow its advice at all times.
There are voluntary agreements in some parts of Scotland around the use of jet skis, including duration of use and timings. We are not aware of a specific agreement covering Wardie Bay. These agreements are not a statutory requirement. If someone suspects that a wildlife crime has been committed, they should report the incident to Police Scotland.