Scottish Fishermen’s Federation says EU deal is ‘disastrous’

[ad_1] <img sizes="(min-width: 1280px) 50vw, (min-width: 1008px) 66vw, 96vw" srcset="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/240/cpsprodpb/f0ca/live/e6ca3ea0-3499-11f0-ad6d-67c1c2fdfbf5.jpg.webp 240w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/320/cpsprodpb/f0ca/live/e6ca3ea0-3499-11f0-ad6d-67c1c2fdfbf5.jpg.webp 320w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/f0ca/live/e6ca3ea0-3499-11f0-ad6d-67c1c2fdfbf5.jpg.webp 480w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/640/cpsprodpb/f0ca/live/e6ca3ea0-3499-11f0-ad6d-67c1c2fdfbf5.jpg.webp 640w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/800/cpsprodpb/f0ca/live/e6ca3ea0-3499-11f0-ad6d-67c1c2fdfbf5.jpg.webp 800w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1024/cpsprodpb/f0ca/live/e6ca3ea0-3499-11f0-ad6d-67c1c2fdfbf5.jpg.webp 1024w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1536/cpsprodpb/f0ca/live/e6ca3ea0-3499-11f0-ad6d-67c1c2fdfbf5.jpg.webp 1536w" src="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/f0ca/live/e6ca3ea0-3499-11f0-ad6d-67c1c2fdfbf5.jpg.webp" loading="eager" alt="PA Media An overhead shot of a man working on a fishing boat in the North Sea. He is wearing a bright-coloured top and red trousers and is standing on the right of the boat." class="sc-4abb68ca-0 ldLcJe"/> PA Media The Scottish Fisherman's Federation mentioned the deal was "horrible" for the trade in Scotland

Some sections of Scotland's fishing trade have accused Sir Keir Starmer's authorities of "capitulating" to the EU over a deal on entry to UK waters.

Labour ministers have agreed a 12-year deal which extends current entry for EU boats in alternate for decreased checks and restrictions on meals exports.

The settlement was described as "disastrous" by the Scottish Fishermen's Federation (SFF) whereas Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes mentioned it was a "nice betrayal of our fishing fleet".

However fish farming physique Salmon Scotland welcomed the deal as a "slashing of purple tape" which is able to enable Scottish merchandise and folks simpler entry to the EU.

The prime minister formally introduced the deal as a part of the primary UK-EU summit, describing it as a "win-win".

He mentioned the fishing settlement would defend UK entry with no improve in EU vessels, whereas different measures meant shellfish may now be bought once more in Europe.

The brand new sanitary and phytosanitary settlement (SPS) would additionally profit different agricultural exporters whereas holidaymakers will be capable to use eGates at some airports to chop down on passport queue wait occasions, Starmer added.

Forbes welcomed nearer co-operation which "unpicks a small a part of the injury that Brexit continues to inflict".

However she criticised the dearth of session with the Scottish authorities over the fishing deal.

"Given the significance of fishing to Scotland it's also astonishing that the Scottish authorities was giving no warning of this nice betrayal of our fishing fleet," she mentioned.

<img sizes="(min-width: 1280px) 50vw, (min-width: 1008px) 66vw, 96vw" srcset="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/240/cpsprodpb/3912/live/bb9e0a30-349a-11f0-ad6d-67c1c2fdfbf5.jpg.webp 240w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/320/cpsprodpb/3912/live/bb9e0a30-349a-11f0-ad6d-67c1c2fdfbf5.jpg.webp 320w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/3912/live/bb9e0a30-349a-11f0-ad6d-67c1c2fdfbf5.jpg.webp 480w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/640/cpsprodpb/3912/live/bb9e0a30-349a-11f0-ad6d-67c1c2fdfbf5.jpg.webp 640w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/800/cpsprodpb/3912/live/bb9e0a30-349a-11f0-ad6d-67c1c2fdfbf5.jpg.webp 800w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1024/cpsprodpb/3912/live/bb9e0a30-349a-11f0-ad6d-67c1c2fdfbf5.jpg.webp 1024w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1536/cpsprodpb/3912/live/bb9e0a30-349a-11f0-ad6d-67c1c2fdfbf5.jpg.webp 1536w" src="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/3912/live/bb9e0a30-349a-11f0-ad6d-67c1c2fdfbf5.jpg.webp" loading="lazy" alt="PA Media A container full of silver and white fish caught off the coast of Scotland." class="sc-4abb68ca-0 ldLcJe"/> PA Media The UK authorities has agreed a 12-year fishing cope with the EU

However SFF chief government Elspeth Macdonald mentioned she was fearful the settlement would finish any "leverage" the UK has in future negotiations.

She informed BBC Radio's Good Morning Scotland programme: "This isn't a roll over, it is a whole capitulation to the EU and a disastrous final result for the Scottish fishing fleet.

"The EU have clearly reneged on a deal that they signed as much as in 2020 and have mentioned that they require to have one other multi-year deal.

"However in doing so the UK loses all its negotiating capital and all its leverage, so the EU continues to take a far greater share of the sources in our waters than they're entitled to.

"We have at all times been on this place the place fishing appears to be the expendable worth for one thing else that the UK desires."

Reducing 'purple tape'

Whereas the deal has been criticised, it has additionally been welcomed in different components of Scotland's fishing and meals manufacturing industries.

Tavish Scott, chief government of Salmon Scotland, mentioned the brand new settlement would assist reduce the time taken to get merchandise into the EU market.

"This breakthrough will ease the burden on our farmers, processors and the communities they help," he mentioned.

"Scottish salmon is the UK's largest meals export, with robust demand within the EU, the US and past."

The deal additionally advantages shellfish producers after the EU banned British fishermen from selling live mussels, oysters, clams, cockles and scallops to its member states in 2021.

Underneath these guidelines, fishermen had been beforehand not allowed to move the animals to the EU until they'd already been handled in purification vegetation.

'Offered down the river'

Mike Park, chief government of the Scottish White Fish Affiliation, described the deal as an "utter betrayal".

He mentioned it was the "third time" the fishing trade had been "bought down the river," citing selections by former prime minister Ted Heath, who took the UK into the EU in 1973, and Boris Johnson, who negotiated its exit within the aftermath of Brexit in 2020.

Mr Park mentioned: "We perceive the free move of meals merchandise, the EU profit from that and the UK profit from it.

"However right here we've a large fleet coming into UK waters and the UK fishing trade will get nothing out of it."

<img sizes="(min-width: 1280px) 50vw, (min-width: 1008px) 66vw, 96vw" srcset="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/240/cpsprodpb/ffa8/live/c032be70-34a3-11f0-bebc-f958f2f43d2b.jpg.webp 240w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/320/cpsprodpb/ffa8/live/c032be70-34a3-11f0-bebc-f958f2f43d2b.jpg.webp 320w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/ffa8/live/c032be70-34a3-11f0-bebc-f958f2f43d2b.jpg.webp 480w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/640/cpsprodpb/ffa8/live/c032be70-34a3-11f0-bebc-f958f2f43d2b.jpg.webp 640w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/800/cpsprodpb/ffa8/live/c032be70-34a3-11f0-bebc-f958f2f43d2b.jpg.webp 800w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1024/cpsprodpb/ffa8/live/c032be70-34a3-11f0-bebc-f958f2f43d2b.jpg.webp 1024w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1536/cpsprodpb/ffa8/live/c032be70-34a3-11f0-bebc-f958f2f43d2b.jpg.webp 1536w" src="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/ffa8/live/c032be70-34a3-11f0-bebc-f958f2f43d2b.jpg.webp" loading="lazy" alt="Mike Park looking straight at the camera. He is wearing a dark green gilet with a brown collar over a white shirt. He is wearing glasses and is standing in front of a harbour with boats in it." class="sc-4abb68ca-0 ldLcJe"/> Mr Park mentioned the deal was an "utter betrayal" of the fishing trade

Scottish Conservative MP for Gordon and Buchan, Harriet Cross, described the deal as a "give up" and "one of many largest acts of betrayal that our fishing trade has seen in Scotland."

She mentioned: "Our fishermen have been used as a pawn by Keir Starmer, which is able to lead to catastrophic penalties for our coastal communities."

The UK authorities additionally introduced a £360m fund to put money into coastal communities as a part of the settlement.

It mentioned that will go in the direction of new know-how and gear to modernise the fleet, coaching to upskill workforces and assist to "revitalise" coastal communities.

<img sizes="(min-width: 1280px) 50vw, (min-width: 1008px) 66vw, 96vw" srcset="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/240/cpsprodpb/3c8b/live/01218eb0-34a5-11f0-bebc-f958f2f43d2b.jpg.webp 240w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/320/cpsprodpb/3c8b/live/01218eb0-34a5-11f0-bebc-f958f2f43d2b.jpg.webp 320w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/3c8b/live/01218eb0-34a5-11f0-bebc-f958f2f43d2b.jpg.webp 480w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/640/cpsprodpb/3c8b/live/01218eb0-34a5-11f0-bebc-f958f2f43d2b.jpg.webp 640w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/800/cpsprodpb/3c8b/live/01218eb0-34a5-11f0-bebc-f958f2f43d2b.jpg.webp 800w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1024/cpsprodpb/3c8b/live/01218eb0-34a5-11f0-bebc-f958f2f43d2b.jpg.webp 1024w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1536/cpsprodpb/3c8b/live/01218eb0-34a5-11f0-bebc-f958f2f43d2b.jpg.webp 1536w" src="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/3c8b/live/01218eb0-34a5-11f0-bebc-f958f2f43d2b.jpg.webp" loading="lazy" alt="Getty Images Scottish salmon showing the Label Rouge quality mark on a bed of ice for sale in a French supermarket." class="sc-4abb68ca-0 ldLcJe"/> Getty Pictures Scottish salmon carries the "Label Rouge" high quality mark in France

About 4,000 persons are employed in Scotland's industrial sea fishing trade, according to a Scottish government report published in 2023 .

In 2022, it introduced £335m into the Scottish economic system, greater than half of which got here from Aberdeenshire, together with the UK's largest fishing port at Peterhead.

The fish farming and aquaculture industries account for about 2,200 jobs and brought in £337m to the Scottish economy in 2022 .

In France, Scottish salmon grew to become the primary non-French product to hold the "Label Rouge" mark, given to merchandise deemed to be of a "superior high quality".

<img sizes="(min-width: 1280px) 50vw, (min-width: 1008px) 66vw, 96vw" srcset="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/240/cpsprodpb/73ca/live/af574630-34b6-11f0-8519-3b5a01ebe413.png.webp 240w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/320/cpsprodpb/73ca/live/af574630-34b6-11f0-8519-3b5a01ebe413.png.webp 320w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/73ca/live/af574630-34b6-11f0-8519-3b5a01ebe413.png.webp 480w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/640/cpsprodpb/73ca/live/af574630-34b6-11f0-8519-3b5a01ebe413.png.webp 640w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/800/cpsprodpb/73ca/live/af574630-34b6-11f0-8519-3b5a01ebe413.png.webp 800w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1024/cpsprodpb/73ca/live/af574630-34b6-11f0-8519-3b5a01ebe413.png.webp 1024w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1536/cpsprodpb/73ca/live/af574630-34b6-11f0-8519-3b5a01ebe413.png.webp 1536w" src="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/73ca/live/af574630-34b6-11f0-8519-3b5a01ebe413.png.webp" loading="lazy" alt="Photo byline of Glenn Campbell" class="sc-4abb68ca-0 ldLcJe"/> Keir Starmer has described this UK-EU deal as a "win-win" however that's not essentially how it's considered by each a part of the Scottish fishing trade.

The sharply contrasting reactions of the Scottish Fishermen's Federation - which has accused the UK authorities of "capitulation" - and Salmon Scotland, which has welcomed an settlement it believes will "slash purple tape", underlines the truth that any deal entails trade-offs.

The UK authorities is attempting to offset the frustration of some within the fishing trade with a £360m fund for coastal communities.

There are elements of nearer cooperation between the UK and EU that the Scottish authorities is pleased to welcome.

Nevertheless, there was by no means going to be a bundle that will fulfill SNP ministers, as they favour a return to the EU.

They argue the easiest way for that to be achieved is thru Scottish independence. However that debate has misplaced a lot of its earlier vitality.

An earlier "reset" in relations between the UK and devolved governments has improved how they work collectively.

However Scottish ministers argue that they need to have been consulted on as we speak's deal, regardless of overseas affairs being a matter reserved to Westminster.