Review of the Amended Economic Link License Condition

22 Aug 2025 11:52 AM

A review of the impact of the Scottish Government's economic link licence condition following the introduction of amended arrangements in 2023.

Introduction

In September 2022, the Scottish Government announced that the economic link licence condition for Scottish vessels was to be amended.

The aim of this change was to increase the volume of valuable fish stocks landed in Scotland in order to:

• Support the long term, sustainable growth of local economies where fishing is an important driver for business activity (e.g. Peterhead, Fraserburgh, and Shetland) by increasing the volume and regularity of the supply of fish landed and available to process in Scotland;
• Attract greater investment and employment in Scotland’s fishing industry by reducing supply chain risks for Scottish fish processing and handling businesses; and
• Bring greater social and economic benefits to Scotland from a Scottish national resource by spreading the benefit arising from fishing quotas more widely through fishing communities.

This was done by making landings into Scotland the main basis for fulfilling the economic link licence condition.

Why are we conducting this review?

When amending the economic link licence condition, the Scottish Government committed to keeping it under review. This review forms part of that process.

This review in particular has a key focus on the impact of the policy change on the pelagic sector, which was and remains, the key area of contention. This review also touches upon how the change has impacted on the demersal and shellfish sector, and quota gifting.

What is being assessed in this review?

In this document we will explore (i) landings data and other available data sources and (ii) stakeholder feedback to establish:

• Whether the aims and objectives of the policy intervention have been achieved.
• The views of those impacted by the policy intervention.
• Recommendations for potential changes to the policy intervention.

The production of this review utilises:

• Landings data and other available information sources
• Information provided to the Scottish Government by businesses impacted by the policy (in particular meetings held with impacted businesses used to inform this review document) and feedback from Marine Directorate Coastal Offices.
• The impact assessments and documentation produced as part of the consultation process.

As set out above though the impact on all sectors is considered, the focus of this review is on the impact on the pelagic sector.

Structure of Report

In Section 2 (Background - what has changed), we will explore briefly the background to the policy change and what was changed in 2022.

Section 3 (Analysis of landings data), we will explore:

• landings data - to establish whether the policy change has resulted in greater landings into Scotland (including specific ports),
• price trends – looking at prices achieved in Scotland compared to elsewhere for pelagic stocks,
• processor purchasing – how the tonnage of mackerel and herring purchased by Scottish pelagic processors has changed.

Section 4 (Stakeholder feedback) explores feedback received from those impacted by the policy change following engagement with different stakeholders.

Section 5 (Review on the impact on the demersal/shellfish sector) explores the impact on demersal/shellfish sector, particularly demersal/shellfish vessels landing their catch into other parts of the United Kingdom.

Section 6 (Quota Gifting) explores changes in Quota Gifting since 2023.

Section 7 (Conclusion and recommendation) explores whether the amended economic link provisions have achieved the objectives and aims of the policy, explore key concerns raised in stakeholder feedback and make recommendations in relation to possible amendments.

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