Chamber and committees

Subordinate legislation - The Red Rocks and Longay Urgent Marine Conservation (No. 2) Order 2021, response from the Minister for Environment, Biodiversity and Land Reform

Letter from the Minister for Environment, Biodiversity and Land Reform, Mairi McAllan, to the Convener, 22 February 2022

Dear Convener,

The Red Rocks and Longay Urgent Marine Conservation (No. 2) Order 2021 (SSI 2021/463)

I refer to the above and to your your letter of 3 February 2022, for which I am grateful.

Stakeholder engagement undertaken in November 2021 was not a formal public consultation. In order to understand the views of key stakeholders regarding the extension to the Red Rocks and Longay Urgent MPA, and to gather any evidence that could support the decision making process, a series of meetings were held. It is these meetings that are summarised on the Scottish Government website.

With regard to your other question about divers and other fishers potentially being reluctant to report areas requiring protection, this should not have a bearing on management measures where they are subsequently put in place. It is important that any measure adopted to protect marine biodiversity be based on the risk that an activity poses, without exception. Citizen scientists have an important role to play in reporting discoveries of marine biodiversity and I expect they will continue to do so.

Thank you for your consideration of this process.

MÀIRI MCALLAN