Jamie McGrigor, Highlands & Islands MSP and the Scottish Conservative Fisheries Spokesman, is raising the concerns of west coast fishermen about the Scottish Government’s proposed new marine protected areas (MPAs). Fishermen have contacted Jamie expressing very real concerns that the fishing restrictions proposed through the MPAs will endanger their businesses and livelihoods and cause economic hardship in some very fragile remote and island communities. Jamie has tabled a series of written Parliamentary Questions on the subject.Speaking today Jamie said:“ Like the Scottish fishing industry, I supports the concept of MPAs but I share the astonishment of west coast fishermen that the compromises which they thought had been agreed through the consultation process were disregarded when the MPA proposals were published last month. Indeed they went far beyond the protection of specific marine features.“ I have always argued that MPAs need to be proportionate and must allow existing sustainable fishing activities to continue. Fishermen thought that the Scottish Government supported this too but its proposed new MPAs have patently failed to achieve this.“ I share the concerns that the economic impact of these fishing restrictions has been seriously underestimated and that the ripple effects on fish processors- whose views have not been adequately considered- and other associated businesses will be significant.“ I have been contacted by individual prawn and scallop fishermen from Kintyre, Mull and the Western Isles and there is a significant degree of anger towards the Scottish Government. I am aware that a number of fishing organisations met with Richard Lochhead earlier this week and I call on him to respond to the very real worries that were expressed to him. I am also supporting fishing organisations who want extra time to be able to gather their own socio-economic information on the impact these proposed fishing restrictions will have on some very fragile local economies.”