Scallops spat with Scotland rumbles on

Governments at loggerheads

The Scottish and Manx governments appear to have fallen out over new scallop licence arrangements.

The changes to the licence mean from Monday (15 Jan) any non-Manx vessel fishing for scallops in the Island's territorial waters must report daily to an Isle of Man port for catch inspection.

However, they can opt out of this requirement if they have only been fishing in Manx waters since leaving their home port, and log their catch electronically instead.

The move has angered the Scottish government, which has accused the Island of breaching the existing Fisheries Management Agreement.

It has threatened to invoke a dispute resolution process if the Manx government doesn't call a halt to the new measures forthwith.

Department of Environment, Food and Agriculture Chief Executive Richard Lole says if you remove all the politics from the issue, it's simply a case of the Island trying to conserve its scallop stocks for future generations: (play audio)

The Manx government has stated it's disappointed by the Scottish response, but will continue to engage with FMA partners to try and find an effective, alternative solution.

It adds the new licence arrangements will remain in place for the foreseeable future, however.