EU Ombudsman finds in favour of Scottish Fishermen’s Federation in mistake over allowable days at sea off west coast

The Scottish Fishermen’s Federation (SFF) spotted an administrative error in 2007 EU legislation which cut 28 days from the time authorised vessels could spend off the west of Scotland.The SFF lodged a complaint last year which has now been upheld by the EU ombudsman. The Commission has to respond by the end of April.The mistake cut the west of Scotland allocation from 280 to 250 days and was part of the final Council ruling for 2007.

As is the way in such matters, when the SFF first made its complaint the Commission stood by its ruling. The ombudsman has now found that administrators at the Commission ‘mistakenly interchanged the data in two columns of a document’ regulating days at sea. He urged the Commission to correct its error now, pointing out that the mistake could have a knock-on effect in future years.

Patrick Stewart from the Clyde Fishermen’s Association – which is a constituent member of the SFF – welcomed the Ombudsman’s decision and raised the standard for all minnows: ‘The determination of our fishermen, against the advice of some and the indifference of many, has proved that it is still possible for a David to right the wrongs of a Goliath’.

And so say all of us.