A FISHING industry body has hit out at a conservation group, accusing them of spreading "fake news" in an upcoming report.
Based in the north east, the Scottish Fisherman's Federation (SFF) has claimed a report published by Oceana, which calls for the "legally binding deadline to end overfishing", is attempting to disrupt upcoming annual talks on fishing quotas.
The report claims nearly eight in 10 adults in Britain support stricter limits on catches in UK waters.
The survey was carried out by More in Common on behalf of Oceana with 2073 adults across Scotland, England and Wales questioned.
Federation bosses said the report could disrupt the talks, stating that the group is "wasting everyone’s time with a series of cherry-picked statements, reliance on obsolete science and creative wording to perpetuate a narrative of gloom and doom about fisheries that bears little relation to reality".
SFF chief executive Elspeth Macdonald questioned in the Press and Journal, “who funds Oceana?", before asking who the group represents.
She added: "What gives it the right to try to influence policy and fisheries negotiations that will be critical for the livelihoods of our members next year and in the years ahead, with such a farrago of nonsense?
“If they are going to take issue with the sector, eNGOs (environmental non-governmental organisations) should save themselves from embarrassment by getting their facts and analysis right.”
Macdonald defended the industry, stating more than 70% of Scotland’s commercially-caught species are sustainable, that fish has the lowest carbon footprint of almost any food and "the industry has the clearest vested interest in being responsible custodians of our stocks".
She added: “SFF will continue to concentrate its efforts on co-operating with governments to implement practicable and reasonable policies and management measures instead of fantasies dreamt up in corporate boardrooms by people who have never been on a fishing boat in their lives.”
Launching its report, Oceana said: “Eight in ten Brits are concerned about the impacts of declining fish populations on ocean wildlife such as seabirds and dolphins.
“And 78% backed Oceana’s calls for stricter limits on catches in UK seas, in line with what scientists say is sustainable.”
The group's UK executive director Hugo Tagholm said: “Overfishing in UK waters, and the destruction of ocean wildlife it drives, is fundamentally a political choice.
“Year-on-year, catch limits have been set too high, with no regard for those small, local boats that need healthy seas to survive.
“Right now, we are allowing wealthy corporations to asset-strip our seas and move on, with no regard for coastal communities or our heritage as an ocean nation.
“Ending overfishing would bring back the abundance of our seas, provide resilience in the face of the climate crisis, and boost coastal economies. It is an opportunity that should not be missed.”
Oceana is formed by several eNGOs, including The Pew Charitable Trusts, Oak Foundation, Marisla Foundation, Sandler Foundation and Rockefeller Brothers Fund.
