'If we lose the pier then we lose the fishing industry!' Scarborough fishermen slam new council plans for harbour

This includes repairing the harbour’s existing facilities, as well as new parking arrangements, toilets, hospitality and a space for outdoor events and cultural activities.

But fishermen believe the harbour should be used exclusively for the fishing industry, in which Scarbough is of the biggest harbours in Europe for lobster catches.

Fred Normandale, 76, is a retired Scarborough fisherman and former chairman and president of the National Federation of Fishermen’s Organisations.

He told GB News that the plans are a "land grab" only benefitting tourists and said: "There's nothing wrong with bringing visitors around the harbour is great, but not to the exclusion of industry.

"If we lose that pier, then we lose the fishing industry and we'll lose the next opportunities for the harbour.

"We've got to keep moving forward, whether it's fishing, tourism, oil. The harbour needs work. The harbour needs using. And if the take it for tourism, it will be the end of what would be the next adventure for Scarborough Harbour."

With the right facilities, including a boat lift to service boats, fisherman in Scarborough believe the harbour and their industry could support the renewables sector.

Vessels servicing the world’s largest wind farm at nearby Dogger Bank could use the port, as well as those working on the carbon capture project in Teesside, and the development of offshore gasfields, Fred Normandale said.

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"Scarborough and Whitby are the two nearest ports to the Dogger Bank," he told GB News.

"It's not that far to the rough gas field. It's 40 miles south east. If it brings vessels, it brings crew. If it brings crew, it brings accommodation.

"If it brings vessels, it brings service in. It brings fuel, it brings joiners, it brings shipwrights and all that's gone.

"We've lost all our infrastructure here. We used to have joiners, blacksmiths, we had engineers. But it's gone because the infrastructure has failed."Fisherman Bob Roberts believes the plans would destroy Scarborough's maritime legacy.

He told GB News: "The fishing industry has survived here for centuries and was the basis on which the town was built. It's really the beating heart of the town down here [the harbour].

"It's one of the few communities left that reveres their heritage and it's important that that's preserved."

North Yorkshire Council say these proposals would dramatically improve facilities for the local fishing industry, staff and visitors to the pier.

The chairman of the Scarborough Town Board, David Kerfoot, said: “Scarborough’s West Pier is due to provide a major boost for both economic and environmental reasons.

“The proposed project is an opportunity to transform the harbour whilst respecting and celebrating Scarborough’s rich fishing heritage.

“Many of the buildings on the West Pier are in desperate need of renovation, and these proposals would dramatically improve the facilities for the local fishing industry, staff and visitors to the pier.

“It is also imperative that we continue to drive growth in the town, and the plans would make West Pier a must-visit destination for hospitality, leisure and events which we hope will encourage further investment to boost the local economy.”

The regeneration scheme sits alongside the council’s wider investment plans for Scarborough Harbour, which include work to the infrastructure and other facilities for harbour users.

The project would be funded from the £20.2 million grant, awarded to Scarborough as part of the Government’s Towns Fund, as well as by North Yorkshire Council’s investment fund and regeneration budgets.