The Scottish Seafood Association (SSA) has hit out at the Labour government’s new deal with the EU over fishing rights, claiming it leaves the country’s seafood sector “reeling and disillusioned”.
It comes after prime minister Keir Starmer agreed a 12-year deal which extends existing access for EU boats in exchange for reduced checks and restrictions on food exports.
While the association welcomes in principle modest improvements to EU border trade infrastructure and inspection controls, the association says they do little to offset the serious damage caused by the government’s failure to deliver the long-promised gains of Brexit for Scotland’s fishing and seafood processing communities.
Jimmy Buchan, CEO of the Scottish Seafood Association, said: “This is not just a failure of negotiation – it is a failure of understanding, leadership, and accountability.
“Our industry has endured hardship with the belief that control of our waters would lead to prosperity. Instead, the UK government has once again given away access to our marine resources with no meaningful return.”
The SSA says the latest development delivers a hammer blow to the catching sector, while processors face mounting uncertainty and disruption due to both insufficient local supply and labour shortages exacerbated by restrictive immigration policy.
As a result, the SSA has demanded a full explanation of the terms and trade-offs made in these EU negotiations and a reversal of decisions that it says undermine the Scottish seafood industry. It has also called for Scotland’s seafood sector to be put at the heart of future fisheries and trade deals.
“This is not just a betrayal of political promises,” added Jimmy. “It is a betrayal of the people who have built their lives and businesses around a sustainable, world-class seafood sector.”
