SCOTLAND'S fisheries secretary has pledged to resist "absurd" proposals by the European Commission which threaten to shut down waters off the west coast.
Richard Lochhead is to hold an emergency meeting with Commissioner Joe Borg in Brussels tomorrow ahead of this year's fishing talks.
The meeting of the Fisheries Council will determine how many fish can be caught in Scottish waters in 2009. Lochhe
ad said he intended to call for a major rethink of plans which would effectively ban trawling. And he warned that the proposals would harm relations between fishermen and EU policy makers.
Lochhead said: "We will vigorously resist these absurd and outrageous proposals. At a time of great economic uncertainty we should be doing everything in our power to support our hard-pressed fishing communities – not destroy them."
He acknowledged there are "difficulties" with west coast whitefish stocks, but said closing the area to all trawl fisheries would be "disproportionate". He said: "It is imperative that the measures taken do not close a vital sector of the Scottish fishing industry and the communities they serve from Campbeltown to Stornoway."
The European Commission proposals published this month would see the west of Scotland whitefish fishery closed up to a distance of 200 miles from the shore to protect dwindling stocks.
