Six Whalsay fishermen yesterday admitted their part in a £14 million scam to cheat European fishing quota restrictions. At the High Court in Glasgow David Hutchison, 64, Robert Polson, 47, Thomas Eunson, 55, Allen Ander­son, 54, John Irvine, 66, and Allister Irvine, 61, admitted landing thousands of tonnes of “black fish”.

A new book by Cunningsburgh-based writer Charlie Simpson charts the amazing revolution which has taken place in marine navigation over the past 60 years.

The development of electronic equipment, which can now pinpoint locations precisely and effortlessly, has utterly transformed the maritime industries, and fishing in particular.

A significant proportion of the Scottish whitefish fleet is facing financial collapse unless there is an easing of the current management restrictions.

That was the message industry leaders took to Scottish fisheries minister Richard Lochhead when they met him in Aberdeen on Wednesday.

Environmental and animal welfare agencies are carrying out an investigation into the deaths of thousands of fully-grown salmon at a fish farm on the West Side earlier this month.

Whalers who took part in the expeditions to the South Atlantic will have their work commemorated in a memorial to be installed in Lerwick shortly.

A possible site for the plinth and plaque has been identified on the new walkway and seating area in front of the Small Boat Harbour, and it is hoped the…

The six workers at the Walls factory owned by troubled seafood business Isle of Shuna, which went into administration yesterday, have been told they will lose their jobs.

West Side mussel business Demlane Ltd has gone into administration alongside its parent company Isle of Shuna plc, in what will come as a major blow to the local seafood industry.

Scottish fisheries minister Richard Lochhead joined the chorus of condemnation of the Icelandic and Faroese governments today with an attack on their “damaging and irresponsible” increases in mackerel quota allocations.

Faroese and Icelandic fishing vessels could be banned from EU waters if the “anarchic” situation created by their massive increases in mackerel quotas is not resolved, fisheries commissioner Maria Damanaki warned today.

The European Union and the Scottish and UK governments must “play hard” with Faroe and Iceland for their large, self-imposed increas­es in mackerel quotas if the local pelagic fishery is to be kept out of danger, chairman of the Shetland Fishermen’s Association Hansen Black has warned.

A former Lerwick optician is suing his estranged wife and erstwhile business partner for more than £800,000, claiming that her actions after they went their separate ways six years ago effectively left him out of work.

New SIC chief executive Alistair Buchan came face to face with all councillors this week for the first time since taking up the post for what he described as “very positive” initial discussions about how to react to major criticisms in the Accounts Commission’s recent report on the local authority.

Multiple Grammy winner Steve Earle, the outspoken singer-song­writer responsible for a host of classic Americana songs including Copperhead Road, Guitar Town and Galway Girl, will be stopping off in Lerwick next Thursday for a re-arranged show at Clickimin.