This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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Angling reels in £113m for economy
15/03/2004
Angling is worth £113 million a year for Scotland's economy and supports almost 3,000 jobs, according to a report, The Economic Impact of Game and Coarse Angling in Scotland, produced by Galsgow Caledonian University and Cogentsi Research International.
The report includes the results of surveys of anglers and fishery owners throughout Scotland, which was divided into seven regions for the purpose - Dumfries and Galloway, Borders, Central, North East, Highlands, Western Isles, and Orkney and Shetland.
Deputy Environment and Rural Development Minister Allan Wilson said:
"Angling is reputedly Britain's biggest participative sport. For a long time, there has been a perception that angling was important to the Scottish economy. This report makes that perception a reality.
"With an annual expenditure of £113 million and 2,800 jobs being supported, most of them in rural areas, the sport of game and coarse angling, not only helps foster an appreciation of our country's natural resources, but also brings clear economic benefits to Scotland, particularly rural Scotland.
"This report underlines the value of the work being done by the Executive and its Agencies to understand the biology of Scotland's freshwater fish and the work undertaken to protect and improve Scotland's rural and freshwater resources, which plays such an important role in providing the necessary environment in which the sport of angling can prosper.
"We are grateful for the cooperation of so many organisations and individuals with an interest in angling in providing the information necessary to allow completion of this important work.
"The Executive gave a commitment in our Partnership Agreement to continue to promote access for anglers to watercourses. We all know how valuable our fish are in natural heritage terms, and we know how much we should be promoting this sport. This report has shown us just how much a sustainable angling sector can add to Scotland's economy too.
"The recent consolidation of the Scottish salmon and freshwater fisheries legislation, some of it more than a century old, gives us the opportunity to look afresh at the legislative framework underpinning the sport. New legislation is planned, within this Parliament, to address issues such as fishing methods, access and management.
"I want to see the further development of sustainable fisheries for game and coarse fishing. I look forward to engaging with all those interested in the future of angling in Scotland in the coming months."