Polly Douglas convinced delegates in Chile to choose Scotland last month, but the Faroes will now host Sea Lice 2020.

Scotland replaced by Faroes as sea lice conference host

The organisers of the 13th International Sea Lice Conference due to be held in 2020 have announced that it will now be held in the Faroe Islands instead of Scotland.

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In a post on Twitter, the organisers said Scotland had renounced its plans to host the event due to “agenda problems”.

Instead the event will take place in Tórshavn, the capital of the Faroes, in September 2020.

Scotland won the honour of hosting the conference last month, beating Australia and the Faroes in a vote by delegates at this year’s conference in Punta Arenas, Chile.

Representatives from the countries presented the benefits of their homelands and explained the reasons why they should be the venue for the 2020 event. Polly Douglas, aquaculture innovations manager at the Scottish Aquaculture Innovation Centre (SAIC), made a pitch on behalf of the University of Stirling’s Institute of Aquaculture.

Scotland beat Australia by three votes, gaining 37% to Australia’s 36% and the Faroes’ 27%.

A university spokesperson said: “The University of Stirling is in discussion with the organisers of the International Sea Lice Conference to host a future event.”