1. To ask the Scottish Government how inshore marine protected areas are managed. (S5O-04649)

Last week, the Scottish Government designated the west of Scotland MPA, which means that more than 30 per cent of Scotland’s seas are now protected, thereby exceeding the proposed new international targets.

On the management of MPAs, public authorities must not grant authorisation for activities where there is significant risk of hindering an MPA’s conservation objectives. Therefore most activities are managed by regulatory authorities on an individual level, with reference to NatureScot’s advice. Unlike other sectors, fishing is managed through the implementation of management measures at sector level, with advice from NatureScot on the risks to protected features from fishing activity.

The Minister will be aware of the importance of scallop and prawn fishing to my Constituency, which has companies such as Kallin Shellfish Ltd, which employs 30 people locally and bring vital jobs to areas in which there are few private sector employers. What discussions has the Scottish Government had regarding fisheries management measures for the Sound of Barra special area of conservation

? Would any such proposals be subject to an island communities impact assessment?

I am acutely aware of the importance to the Western Isles of fisheries, including employers such as Kallin Shellfish.

The development of potential fisheries management measures for the Sound of Barra SAC was at the pre-consultation stage when it was delayed because of the current pandemic. Prior to that pause, stakeholder engagement had been under way and had included the holding of meetings in Benbecula and Stornoway in March this year. When we are able to restart that process, there will be further opportunity for stakeholder engagement, and there will also be wider public consultation before any measures are adopted.

I absolutely assure Dr Allan that if it were to be anticipated that any management proposal would have an impact on island communities that would be significantly different from the effect that it would have on others, an island communities impact assessment would be undertaken.

Given that marine conservation and fisheries issues are missing from the Scottish Government’s economic recovery implementation plan, will the Minister say what action will be taken to deliver a blue recovery that would enhance marine health and support inshore fishers to meet sustainability requirements while also supporting local coastal communities?

A variety of such projects are under way at the moment. As I said in my initial response to Dr Allan, just last week we designated one of the largest MPAs—I think that it is the largest—in the north-east Atlantic, which now brings the coverage to more than 30 per cent of our seas being protected. We are continually undertaking work on the designation of such sites.

As I alluded to in my other response, understandably, some measures and pieces of work have had to be put on hold because of the pandemic that we are having to deal with. However, I assure Claudia Beamish and other members that we consider such work to be vital and that we will continue with it as soon as we are able to do so, with the aim of improving the protection of our marine environment.

The south Arran marine protected area has been a tremendous boon to the marine environment to the south of my Constituency. However, it cannot have the same restorative impact as a no-take zone, which would enable the marine environment to regenerate fully. Will the Minister consider the resounding success of the Lamlash Bay no-take zone over the past 12 years, and others across the world, with a view to creating more such zones in Scotland’s threatened marine environments?

Absolutely. We continually look at national and international good practice, because that helps to inform the development of our policies when it comes to protecting and enhancing our marine environment.

Sites within the MPA network have a range of different measures in place and those are being monitored for environmental and economic effects to help to provide an evidence base for any future actions that we might take in our protected areas. The monitoring outcomes, including in Lamlash bay, and experiences elsewhere in the world, will inform how our MPA network evolves, especially after new international targets are set in 2021.