The Scottish Government is “still breaking the law” with decisions on fishing licences, conservationists claimed as they insisted the actions of ministers are “harming our seas”.
Charity Open Seas hit out at the Government more than a year after the Court of Session backed a ruling which declared licensing decisions to allow scallop dredging were unlawful, because ministers did not consider the impact on the marine environment.
Open Seas insisted: “The Scottish Government is still breaking the law, and harming our seas.”
In a blog post published on its website on Thursday, the marine conservation group added: “The law is clear. It’s time for the Scottish Government to follow it.”
It came despite agriculture minister Jim Fairlie insisting to MSPs that the Government “has put in place new arrangements in relation to fish licence authorisation decisions, to ensure that the National Marine Plan is taken into account”.
The row erupted as Sir David Attenborough’s new film Ocean aims to raise awareness of the threat to the world’s oceans.
Concerns exist about scallop dredging because the practice involves dragging weighted nets across the sea bed, with opponents insisting this is harmful to the marine ecosystem.
In the Court of Session ruling, judges stressed ministers should “take decisions in accordance with their own National Marine Plan”, which was adopted by the Government in 2015.
But in its blog post, Open Seas said it has learned the Scottish Government has made a licensing decision, to authorise the transfer of scallop dredge licences, “without consideration of the National Marine Plan”.
It alleged: “The Scottish Government has now acknowledged, in writing, that they breached the law when authorising a licence transfer for scallop dredging on January 29.
“They did not consider the National Marine Plan when making that decision, and therefore did not meet their legal duties under Section 15 of the Marine (Scotland) Act. Again.
The Scottish Government is required by law to license fishing like scallop dredging in accordance with the National Marine Plan - thereby protecting our vital marine habitats from further decline. Unfortunately - despite court judgements in 2023 and 2024 - they are still not… pic.twitter.com/KjhdSiMOmd
— Open Seas (@TheOpenSeas) May 8, 2025
“Incredibly, the Scottish Government continues to license scallop dredging in areas where their own nature conservation advisers recommend it is banned.”
Scottish Green co-leader Patrick Harvie raised the issue in Holyrood, telling MSPs on Wednesday: “My understanding is that Open Seas allege the Scottish ministers have continued to issue licences unlawfully, and have not been considering the Marine National Plan when it has made these authorisations as recently as January this year.”
However Mr Fairlie said that following the court case last year, “the Scottish Government has put in place new arrangements in relation to fish licence authorisation decisions, to ensure that the National Marine Plan is taken into account, as required by Section 15 of the Marine (Scotland) Act 2010”.
He added that Government officials have developed “training and tools for decision makers to support the process”, and have been in “regular correspondence” with Open Seas “concerning the processes which have been adopted”.
He added: “We have introduced processes to ensure fisheries licensing decisions are carried out in line with the court’s ruling.
“Through this process we have developed an assessment template to support the consideration of the relevant policies within the National Marine Plan.”
