Discard ban

A ban on dead fish being thrown back into the sea will cover key Scottish stocks from today.

The discard ban - which includes north western waters - means trawlers have to land their whole catch of prawns and haddock.

It means unmarketable fish must now be landed ashore and counted against quota.

The landing obligation has been in place for mackerel and herring for 12 months.

Fisheries Secretary Richard Lochhead said: “No-one wants to see perfectly edible fish being thrown back into the sea dead, least of all our fishermen.

"The discard ban is an important step towards ending this wasteful situation.

“The ban covering species such as haddock and prawns from the beginning of 2016 will be a big challenge for the industry, but the significant increase in haddock quota will help them to manage the impact.

“These changes will also benefit the industry by helping fish stocks to grow, which should in turn lead to further increases in quota."

Ban on throwing unmarketable fish back in sea

1 January 2016