Scotland’s Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) have been in the news recently following a Greenpeace investigation claiming the Government allows these areas to be exploited by some of the largest trawlers operating in our seas.
The Scottish Government respond to these accusations by claiming their ability to establish protections is limited by the EU Common Fisheries Policy in offshore MPAs (those outside 12 nautical miles from the coast) and must go through an EU process that has been disrupted by the complicated implications of Brexit.
It is our view that Ministers are cherry picking which rules they follow. We set out details in this blog showing how Ministers have already broken the laws designed to protect these sites, following neither the EU or domestic rules when it has come to deregulating activities in a protected area. [Read more…]