8,000 sq miles closed for scallops

Scottish scallop harvesting ban because of Amnesic Shellfish Toxin contamination.

Scottish Mail on Sunday. 18th July 1999

EDITORIAL

A pressing matter

THE Scottish Executive has acted, albeit rather discretely, by banning scallop fishing over an area of 8,000 square miles off the west coast of Scotland following the discovery of potentially fatal toxins. However, this is a matter of acute public interest which the Scottish parliament must address with both openness and urgency: in particular, the role of another important industry - salmon farming -in this crisis must be thoroughly investigated so that it can either be given a clean bill of health or be properly policed. This issue, unlike many of the distractions which have taken the attention of MSPs, is precisely the kind of problem in which the Scottish parliament should take an active and leading role.