THE staunch Brexiteer Jimmy Buchan, former skipper and articulate leader of the Scottish trawlermen, has blasted current Tory post-Brexit immigration plans. As a former Tory candidate and now CEO of the Scottish Seafood Association, he said the move to a point-based visa system would be “catastrophic” for the industry.

He continued that if these proposals were to go ahead, supporting the Scottish Government’s proposal for a separate Scottish visa would be the only way to keep the Scottish fishing industry viable.

READ MORE: Brexit-backing Jimmy Buchan says Tory plans will be catastrophic

I have always been of the opinion that the slippery Boris Johnson would shamelessly sell out Scotland’s fishing industry to secure a trade deal and gain access to EU markets for London’s banking institutions.

Following the EU referendum result in 2016, the honest, hard-working Mr Buchan was quoted as saying: “When I saw the results come in I felt jubilation and a huge sense of relief. We fishermen have been campaigning to get out of Europe for decades”.

Sadly I am old enough to remember how the Tories sold out Scottish fishermen on the way into Europe and I fear they will do the same on the way out. Independence is the only guarantee for the control and progress of the Scottish fishing industry in cooperation with Europe and the world.

Grant Frazer
Newtonmore