Press Release
First Time Shareholders State Aid Case Closed
Shetland Islands Council is pleased to announce that the European Commission has closed the case regarding the recovery of First Time Shareholder Grants made to fishermen between 1994 and 2003.
This news follows months of negotiations involving the Council, Scottish Government, DEFRA, UKRep and the European Commission that were necessary after the European Commission instructed the Council to recover 78 grants that had been provided to fishermen for the purpose of buying into a fishing partnership.
Initially the total sum of the recovery was set at £1.5million, including compound interest, but a period of intensive negotiation has resulted in the recovery being reduced to £55,097 from only a handful of individuals. These sums have now been recovered significantly limiting the potential impact on all the individuals concerned and on the fishing industry.
Speaking on behalf of the Council, the Vice Convenor Josie Simpson said “We are pleased to bring this matter to a close after reaching a satisfactory conclusion to a situation which could have caused significant detriment to the fishing industry”.
Ends.