The Scottish Government has announced that it will be providing £400,000 over the next 18 months to help fishermen pay for the maintenance of lifesaving equipment onboard their boats.

The Scottish Government has written to owners of Scottish fishing vessels to encourage them to apply for funds to reimburse costs associated with the annual maintenance of lifesaving equipment, which could cover costs of up to £250 for some vessels. 

Following the announcement, Fisheries Secretary Richard Lochhead explained: "We're making this extra help available to assist with the costs of annual maintenance of safety equipment as part of our three year action plan. We've also committed £300,000 to cover the costs of the next phase of warranties for vessel monitoring systems.

"These two initiatives are part of the Government's commitment to helping the fishing industry adapt successfully to an era of high and fluctuating fuel prices. We are backing up that programme of work with nearly £29 million over three years, which is made up of Scottish Government and European funding and a contribution from Seafish.

"In such a testing economic climate, we must do everything we can to help Scotland's fishermen and take decisive action to benefit our hard-pressed rural businesses and communities."

The move came about after the fishing industry's fuel taskforce made the recommendation as part of a three year action plan to help the fishing sector.

Other recommendations set to be implemented include introducing fuel efficiency measures for fishing boats and improving marketing of Scottish seafood.