Should the Bill make provision to regulate the movement of fish into inland waters?
We support this proposal in principle, and agree that the best way to proceed is to introduce Regulations analogous to Section 30 in England and Wales governing the movement and introduction of all species. It must be stressed that any new regulations should not act to prevent responsible stocking and introductions of healthy coarse fish into waters where they are already present, or can reasonably be expected to co-exist with other inhabitants. Many coarse species do not reproduce well in Scottish conditions so there must be scope to maintain and enhance stocks in existing coarse fisheries and to develop new ones. It should be noted that there are no commercial fish farms supplying coarse species in Scotland. The legislation must therefore permit the acquisition of stock fish from appropriately health-certified sources in England & Wales. In addition, the legislation should also make provision subject to appropriate health checking and the suitability of the recipient location – for t
