Salmon fishing - proposed river gradings for 2023 season: consultation analysis

5. Scottish Government response

5.1. Response to respondents' views on the proposed river gradings for the 2023 salmon fishing season

The views given on the proposed river gradings have been used to inform the process of finalising the gradings for the 2023 fishing season, which will be used in the annual amendment to The Conservation of Salmon (Scotland) Regulations 2016 that regulates:

• permission for the killing of salmon within inland waters where stocks are above a defined conservation limit such as category 1 or 2 rivers; and
• the mandatory catch and release of salmon in areas which are below their defined conservation limit i.e. those assigned category 3 status.

Respondents who commented that the proposed grade for a specific river was incorrect and should be changed were contacted to discuss these matters further. Once a review of the evidence provided has been completed, the regulations will be brought forward for amendment subject to parliamentary approval. After this process has concluded, the finalised river gradings will be published on the Scottish Government website.

A number of issues were raised by respondents on the assessment methods used to assess the status of stocks and assign the proposed river gradings. The methodology used is the best currently available, is aligned with international best practice and has been developed over a number of years by Marine Scotland scientists. The basic methodology is the same as previous years, the only amendment being those additional methods developed to account for the reduction in fishing that was associated with lockdown measures related to the pandemic in 2020 and 2021.

Marine Scotland is continuing to improve the data used in the modelling by, for example, supporting new counter developments. The stock assessment methods themselves are also being updated to incorporate additional information, notably the impact of fishing effort on catches. However, rod fisheries have only collected effort data since 2019, and more time is required in order to produce and consult on new methods.

There were a small number of respondents who raised concerns that the proposed gradings for Special Areas of Conservation (SAC) which form only part of a larger assessment area should not influence the gradings of the larger area. Within these discussions we have explained that salmon from these SACs may also be caught in the wider river. A precautionary approach is therefore taken where the wider assessment area is not treated as being in better condition than the SAC. This general approach has been taken since the start of the Regulations in 2016. For the 2023 season there is no impact on the ability of these wider areas to retain salmon.

5.2. Response to respondents' views on enhancing catch and release rates through voluntary or mandatory measures

Whilst no specific plans for the introduction of a 100% catch and release policy were laid out, this consultation sought the views of stakeholders on encouraging voluntary measures or introducing mandatory measures to achieve a 100% catch and release policy. An additional aim was to highlight how post-catch mortality can be reduced by adhering to catch and release best practice. There are no plans to change the existing approach to catch and release, however the views received will help to inform policy development in the future. Actions that contribute to further the protection and restoration of wild Atlantic salmon populations will be set out in the Wild Salmon Strategy Implementation Plan.

The Scottish Government is considering a range of options and pursing actions to protect and restore wild Atlantic salmon populations as outlined in the Wild Salmon Strategy, and which will be covered in full through the Implementation Plan. We recognise that the fisheries management community have taken important and significant steps in the past three decades for salmon conservation, including increasing catch and release rates across Scotland and contributing to the creation of guidance for catch and release best practice.