Have your say over plans to shut off 10% of the sea, says Forbes
Time is short to take part in consultation about controversial Highly Protected Marine Areas
Former Scottish Government finance secretary Kate Forbes has urged people concerned about the proposed introduction of Highly Protected Marine Areas (HPMAs) to respond to a consultation on the plan before it closes on Monday.
HPMAs would ban fishing and fish farming in 10% of Scotland’s seas, and their proposed introduction has previously been described by Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch SNP MSP Forbes as an example of how not to do government.
Writing for pro-independence media outlet The National this week, Forbes said: “Too often we discuss issues, like the environment or the economy, in an abstract way, forgetting that policy is all about improving the lives of our fellow citizens.”
The MSP, who narrowly lost an SNP members’ vote to elect the party’s leader, added: “There has been much focus in recent weeks on the proposal to create a network of Highly Protected Marine Areas (HMPAs) that would ban fishing in a tenth of Scottish waters by 2026. This is part of the Bute House Agreement between the SNP and the Scottish Greens, agreed in August 2021.
Striking a balance
“We already have Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), which currently cover about 37% of Scotland’s seas. MPAs strike a balance between the core purpose of protecting biodiversity and allowing sustainable use of our seas – for example, some kinds of fishing.
“HPMAs would go much, much further, and place strict limits to ban all fishing, aquaculture and infrastructure development. The consultation is still open, and I’d recommend anybody with an interest to respond before the deadline of April 17, 2023.”
Forbes used Shieldaig, a small coastal village in Wester Ross, as an example of the type of community that could be threatened by HPMAs.
Nanny’s, a café in the village that employs at least five locals and also sells locally caught fish, is an example of the kind of small business that helps such communities survive and thrive, argued Forbes, but also one that could be threatened if fishing was banned.
“We must govern for all of Scotland, not just parts of Scotland. The SNP must truly be a national party, representing all of our people. We must not adopt the failed UK economic model of only firing on one cylinder (in the UK that is London and the South East),” wrote Forbes.
