Lochhead’s fishing visit

LOCAL fishermen have welcomed the opportunity to quiz Scottish fisheries minister Richard Lochhead during his visit to Shetland this week.

Members of Shetland Fishermen’s Association (SFA) will meet Lochhead at the NAFC Marine Centre in Scalloway on Thursday afternoon.

Association chairman Leslie Tait said: “We’re pleased that Mr Lochhead is coming to Shetland and that he will spend time hearing directly from fishermen.

“His visit coincides with better times for the industry – good stocks have bred confidence, so significant investments are being made once again.

“However, it is vitally important that the discard ban and possible changes to quota allocations don’t jeopardise these positive developments, and we will be raising these issues with the minister.

“Fishing is incredibly important both to the Shetland economy and the wider Scottish economy – a third of the whitefish landed in the UK is caught within 100 nautical miles of Shetland.”

Among the other issues that will be raised with Mr Lochhead are Faroese mackerel quota and inshore fisheries.