Dr. Paddy Gargan:

Absolutely. The biggest issue is marine survival. In the 1980s, when salmon went to sea, approximately 15% of them returned. In recent years, approximately 5% return. Marine survival is approximately a third of what it was 20 years ago. Generally, salmon smolts are being produced in rivers, as they always were. There are no major high seas fisheries and there is small subsistence fishery in Greenland for food. There is no fishery in the Faroe Islands like there used to be. There is practically no exploitation of salmon at sea. The issue of them surviving is down to what happens in the sea and marine survival. The rate has been declining since 2007 but there is some indication this year that it has started to increase again. It is a bit early to say as it is still in the middle of the season but there are indications that this year may be better than recent years.

To put this in perspective, if we were still drift netting, the position would be much worse as up to half of the fish that were returning would not be reaching rivers. The policy in place for ensuring that enough salmon get to spawn, with rivers close or only open for "catch and release" if there are not enough spawners, will safeguard vulnerable stocks.