Introduction
Scotland is blessed with salmon and freshwater fisheries
resources of world renown. Rivers such as the Tweed, Tay,
Dee and Spey are synonymous with both salmon fishing and
Scotland. Loch Leven is world famous for its unique brown
trout population, and some of our large, deep lochs, such
as Loch Awe, are home to the famous 'ferox' trout,
attracting specimen anglers from far and wide. Our rivers
attract grayling anglers from throughout the UK. Coarse
angling is now well established in Scotland, and increasing
in popularity.
A recent survey of
the
economic impact of game and coarse angling in Scotland
(see bottom of page for the Technical Report) has revealed
what many knew without being able to quantify: angling is
important to Scotland's economy, particularly in rural
Scotland. Anglers spend annually about £113M. When
substitution effects are taken into account, this produces
an estimated £100M of output in the Scottish economy, and
supports around 2,800 full time job equivalents. These are
significant figures, and demonstrate the need for all of us
to take the angling sector very seriously. We must remain
conscious of the fact that in addition to the owners of the
fisheries, many businesses, such as hotels and guest
houses, and tackle shops are to a greater or lesser extent
dependent upon angling for their continued existence.
Sitting alongside these findings is the recognition that
the angling sector in Scotland has great scope for
development. Although some salmon beats are let at
significant cost, there are many opportunities for salmon
anglers to access good quality fishing at very reasonable
prices. Many trout lochs in Scotland are lightly fished,
and some hardly at all. Coarse fishing attracts anglers who
wish not only to enjoy their fishing, but to visit some
spectacularly beautiful areas.
Salmon fishing in Scotland is not restricted to angling.
There is a long tradition of netting for salmon in
Scotland. As with all salmon fishing in Scotland, rights to
fish are private, heritable titles that may be bought, sold
or leased. The industry is much smaller now than in the
past, but still provides employment in rural areas, and
provides high quality salmon for a discerning market.
The challenge facing us is to develop fishing for salmon
and freshwater fish in Scotland. However, as with the
development of any business, a plan is needed. It is
essential that steps are taken to ensure that fisheries are
developed in such a way as to ensure their sustainability.
We want to make sure that future generations of Scots and
visitors to Scotland will continue to be able to access and
enjoy their fishing. The plan will involve a combination of
approaches, including establishment of management
structures, the development of codes of best practice, and
legislation to underpin these measures where
appropriate.
A broad spectrum of stakeholders is necessarily involved
in all of this. In the past, most attention has been paid
to the needs and aspirations of fishery owners. However, if
we are to ensure that access to our fishery resource is
optimised, we must take greater account of the desires and
aspirations of anglers, angling clubs and, of course, the
fish. The Forum seeks to do just that, by involving, for
the first time, those people who represent interests whose
property, businesses, leisure pursuits, and general
interests will be affected by any new policy proposals.
This represents a real example of bringing the people into
the policy-making process.
Technical Report: The Economic Impact of Game and
Coarse Fishing in Scotland
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