Scottish Government

The total value of fish landed by Scottish vessels increased by six per cent to £370 million in 2006 - according to provisional figures released today by Scottish Executive National Statistics.

The value of shellfish landings increased by 25 per cent to £140 million between 2005 and 2006 with the volume of landings in this sector increasing by seven per cent to 59 thousand tonnes.

The provisional employment figures indicate an increase in the number of fishermen of five per cent between 2005 to 2006 to reach 5,209.

Other main findings include:

Landings by Scottish based vessels

• High value shellfish landings formed 16 per cent of the total by weight but 38 per cent by value, making shellfish the most valuable sector to the Scottish fleet for the first time.
• The value of demersal landings increased by 11 percent to £136 million despite the volume of landings decreasing by six per cent to 94 thousand tonnes.
• Demersal landings made up 37 per cent of the total value and 25 per cent of the total volume.
• The 2006 pelagic landings have been affected by the repayment arrangements agreed with the Commission for undeclared landings of herring and mackerel. Under administrative arrangements, repayment started in 2006 and covered some undeclared landings in 2005 and 2006.
• The volume of pelagic species landed decreased by 31 per cent to 226 thousand tonnes. Although prices per tonne landed increased, the value landed decreased by 19 per cent to £92 million.
• Pelagic landings made up 25 per cent of the total value and 60 per cent of the total volume.

Scottish Fishing Fleet

• There were 2,224 active fishing vessels based in Scotland at the end of 2006, a net reduction of 152 (six per cent) since 2005.
• In the last decade, the number of over 10m vessels has decreased reflecting the impact of two decommissioning schemes in 2001 and 2003 which gave grants to owners in the Scottish whitefish fleet to decommission their vessel and surrender their fishing licence.
• The over 10 metres fleet decreased by 18 vessels (two per cent) in 2006 to 706, continuing a long term decline. This segment is now 36 per cent smaller than in 1996, a trend which has affected the demersal (down 45 per cent), pelagic (down 53 per cent) and shellfish (down 26 per cent) sectors.
• The under 10 metre segment of the fleet decreased by 134 vessels (eight per cent) to 1,518 over the year.

Quota Uptake

• Quota uptake reached 90 per cent or more for four of the ten most important demersal stocks (NS Cod, NS Whiting, NS Saithe, NS Plaice). Quota uptake was greater than 80 per cent for NS Haddock, NS Nephrops and NS Anglers and greater than 70 per cent for WS Cod, WS Haddock and WS Nephrops.
• Quota uptake for the four most important pelagic stocks continued to be high in 2006, approaching 100 per cent for NS Herring, WS Herring and WS Mackerel and exceeding 90 per cent for WS Horse Mackerel.

Table 1 : Landings by Scottish based vessels 1999-2006

(p): provisional

Table 2 : Active Scottish based vessels by main fishing method, December 31, 1997 to 2006

(p): provisional

Table 3 : Number of fishermen employed on Scottish based vessels, 1999 to 2006

(p): provisional

(1) The majority of the incerease in employment between 2005 and 2006 was due to an increase in the numbers recorded by Peterhead Fisheries Office, where it is thought that the 2005 figures were understated

BACKGROUND

1. This is a Scottish Executive National Statistics publication. National statistics are produced to high professional standards set out in the National Statistics Code of Practice. They undergo regular quality assurance reviews to ensure that they meet customer needs. They are produced free from any political influence.

2. Collection of data

SEERAD's sea fisheries database (the Fisheries Information Network - FIN) holds details of, among other things, all landings into Scotland and landings abroad by Scottish based vessels (ie vessels licensed at a Scottish port). Information on voyages - catches, gear, sea area fished etc - is supplied by skippers who are required under EU regulations to maintain logbooks. Data on landings - weight, presentation, price etc - is provided by fish sellers under similar EU legislation. SFPA port offices collate the information and enter it locally, and each night it is automatically transmitted to the FIN central server in Pentland House. There are details of about 80,000 voyages and over 1 million sale items recorded on the database each year. DEFRA maintains a similar system for landings into England, Wales & Northern Ireland, and by EWNI vessels landing abroad.

3. Value of Landings

When the Register of Buyers and Sellers (RBS) was introduced in September 2005, Sales Notes were not initially required for sales of Shellfish and information on the value of such landings is consequently missing for 2005. The value has therefore been estimated for a number of landings in 2005, mostly of shellfish, relating to voyages starting on or after 1st September 2005.

4. This News Release can be viewed on the Scottish Executive Internet Web site: www.scotland.gov.uk