Marine Scotland Blog

On 16 December 2025, the UK, the Faroe Islands, Iceland, Norway have agreed an arrangement that delivers a measurable reduction in fishing pressure on North-East Atlantic mackerel.

 

This is a significant step, demonstrating joint leadership and cooperation, aiming to ensure long-term conservation of North-East Atlantic mackerel, one of Scotland’s most important fish stocks.

 

Key elements of this new and enhanced arrangement include:

 

• providing a further positive step towards reaching a fully comprehensive six party quota-sharing arrangement;
• provide a further reduction in fishing pressure of -9.23% of the global TAC. This is on top of the -10.25% reduction already secured through our previous agreements with Norway and Faroe. This will limit fishing by all Coastal states to around 107.5% of the TAC versus almost 118% without this added cooperation, when compared to no agreements.
• promoting the efficient utilisation of the fishery and significantly reducing the need for parties to fish in international waters, linked to associated bilateral access arrangements;
• defining a process for addressing fishing party activity;
• limiting ‘banking and borrowing’ of quota;
• outlining a request to ICES to produce a long-term management strategy for the stock;
• clearly setting out the parties, to the agreement, intent to set their TACs for 2026 in line with an MSY catch scenario of 299,010 tonnes;
• providing stability for industry. In the absence of a comprehensive sharing arrangement for the stock being agreed, these arrangements will remain in place until at least 2028.

 

The overarching aim remains to achieve a fully comprehensive six party sharing arrangement. Parties have committed to work in good faith to secure a full six-party agreement that includes the EU and Greenland. This interim deal keeps that door open.

 

Scotland will continue to put our full energy behind the wider sharing consultations with the aim of seeking agreements based on robust evidence, ensure the sustainability of this stock and fisheries in the long term and are as comprehensive as possible.

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The Scottish Government has taken a significant step toward safeguarding the country’s rich and diverse marine environment with the introduction of new fisheries management measures across 20 offshore Marine Protected Areas (MPAs).

The Offshore Fishing (Prohibition of Fishing Methods) (Scotland) Order 2025 has now been formally laid before the Scottish Parliament and, subject to the parliamentary process, will come into force on 16 October 2025.

This new legislation introduces site specific restrictions on specific fishing methods in offshore MPAs to better protect vulnerable habitats and species, such as deep-sea sponge aggregations, cold-water corals, and seafloor habitats that are critical to marine biodiversity. These measures represent a major milestone in the government’s ongoing commitment to delivering a sustainable approach to marine management, while supporting the long-term viability of Scotland’s fishing industry.

 

The Order follows an extensive stakeholder engagement and a public consultation on proposed fisheries management approaches for these sites. Feedback from stakeholders across the fishing sector, conservation organisations, and other marine users was central to shaping the final outcomes.

 

Site Specific Protection

 

 

• five sites* will see the introduction of full-site restrictions, where only one management option was presented during consultation. These areas will be closed to all fishing methods that are considered damaging to the protected features

 

• thirteen sites will implement zonal measures, as consulted upon, which allow certain types of fishing activity to continue in areas where they are considered compatible with conservation objectives

 

• two sites,  Central Fladen MPA and East of Gannet and Montrose Fields MPA, will adopt revised zonal measures, following updated conservation advice from the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC). These adjustments increase the level of protection in response to new evidence about the sensitivity and ecological value of the designated features in these areas

 

*Anton Dohrn SAC sits fully within the West of Scotland MPA and is subject to the same measures, so is not explicitly detailed in the Order.

 

The Scottish Government has published a comprehensive guidance document to support implementation and stakeholder awareness. This includes detailed information on the measures, such as maps, gear codes, and geographic coordinates of the management areas. Fishers are strongly encouraged to consult this document to ensure compliance with the new regulations.

 

Alongside the guidance, the Scottish Government’s Response to the Consultation has also been published. This response outlines how final decisions were made and provides transparency about how stakeholder feedback, evidence and advice, including updated advice from JNCC, have shaped the management measures.

 

These new protections mark a significant advancement in Scotland’s efforts to ensure the long-term health and resilience of its offshore marine environment. They also reinforce the Scottish Government’s commitment to meeting its national and international obligations on marine biodiversity and sustainable fisheries management.

 

Further information, including full details of the measures, impact assessments and fisheries assessments, is available on our website. Simply search ‘Offshore Marine Protected Areas’. For any enquiries contact the Marine Biodiversity team at Marine_Biodiversity@gov.scot.

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