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The Registration of Fish Farming and Shellfish Farming Businesses Order 1985, made in accordance with Section 7 of The Diseases of Fish Act 1937 (as amended), was introduced for the purpose of obtaining information with a view to preventing the spread of disease amongst fish and shellfish. The Order requires the registration of all fish farming and shellfish farming businesses within two months of commencing business. In Scotland, Fisheries Research Services (FRS) Marine Laboratory acts on behalf of the Scottish Ministers in maintaining the Fish and Shellfish Business Register.
A fish farm is defined as 'any place or structure used for the keeping of fish'. The Fish Health Inspectorate (FHI) provides advice to prospective farmers, and processes the applications for registration. There is no charge for registering a fish or shellfish farm business.
Registration Procedure
Fish and shellfish farmers must complete a business registration form D171 and a site registration form D173. A separate site registration form D173should be completed for each site that makes up the business. Guidance notes (D182) on the registration of an aquaculture business and site or unit, are also available.
Completed registration forms should be returned to the Fish Health Inspectorate (FHI) (e-mail). The FHI will provide further advice concerning registration if required.
Once an application to register has been processed, the FHI will inform the applicant in writing of the registration number and the business details held on the FRS register. The applicant is to be issued with a movement record book.
The movement record book should be used to record:
- Any live fish movement on or off site within 24 hours of the movement
Records must also be kept of observed mortality in the stocks held on site and any fish escapes.
Complete records must be retained for four years.
FHI Site Visits and Sampling
Each site recorded on the FRS register is entered into the FHI's on-going programme of site inspection and sampling. Site visits and sampling requirements will depend on the species held and the nature of trade for the site.
Maintenance of the FRS Register
To ensure that the information held on the FRS register is current and accurate, the FHI check and update the registration details as part of routine site visits. In addition, we require:
- All changes to the registration details for a business or a site should be reported to the FHI in writing, and within one month of the change
Release of Registration Data
Information about fish farming is collected by means of the Farming Business Registration Order 1985, an Order made under Section 7 of the Diseases of Fish Act 1983. Section 9 of that Act conferred confidentiality on information collected by means of such orders, and we have been unable, therefore, to release information required by the Business Registration Order except, as provided in Section 9 of the Act, with the consent of the provider, in an anonymous form, or for the purpose of criminal proceedings.
The Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA) came into force on 1 January 2005. It includes, in Section 26, an exemption to the release of information if its release is prohibited under another enactment (a 'statutory bar'). The Scottish Information Commissioner has advised that it would therefore be appropriate to remove the statutory bar contained in the Diseases of Fish Act 1983, and the Scottish Ministers have accepted that advice. Accordingly, the statutory bar has been removed by means of The Freedom of Information (Relaxation of Statutory Prohibitions on Disclosure of Information)( Scotland) Order 2008 which came into force on 13 October 2008.
This change means that when a request for information is received, for example, for names and addresses of fish farming companies in Scotland, there is no longer a statutory bar to its release. In consequence, such information will normally be released in accordance with the terms of FOISA. Where the information requested constitutes personal data for the purposes of the Data Protection Act 1988, such information will only be disclosed where this can be done in accordance with the provisions of that Act.
For further information contact Fish Health Inspectorate, FRS Marine Laboratory, PO Box 101, 375 Victoria Road, Aberdeen, AB11 9DB; e-mail. |