The new Fisheries Bill - Whay's changed??

With the advent of a new government, a new Fisheries Bill has begun making its way through the Houses of Parliament. The previous version of the Fisheries Bill, intended to replace the EU’s Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) following the UK’s exit from the EU, fell at prorogation in late 2019 and so did not complete its passage through Parliament.

The new Bill incorporates much from its previous iteration, fulfilling its primary purpose of allowing the UK to manage its fisheries as an independent coastal state. These main points are covered in our digest of the previous Fisheries Bill. This article covers the significant changes that the new Bill has introduced.

Core Objectives

The new Fisheries Bill has eight core objectives, two more than the previous Bill. Explanations of those that have remained the same can be found in our previous article.

The transition to a bycatch objective from a discards objective marks a change in emphasis in the new Bill. The discards objective focused on the gradual elimination of discards and ensuring that catches were landed. The bycatch objective, on the other hand, seeks to principally mitigate catching of fish below minimum conservation reference size and other bycatch, as well as ensuring that catches are recorded and landed.

The national benefit objective aims to ensure that the work of vessels registered in the UK chiefly brings social or economic benefits to the UK. For instance, by requiring catches to be landed in UK ports, or focusing on employing UK labour.

Defra described the climate change objective as “a new objective to move us towards ‘climate-smart fishing’ in UK waters”. It incorporates both the aim of mitigating fisheries’ contribution to climate change, as well as the promotion of the sector’s adaptation to the effects of climate change.

Joint Fisheries Statement

The main addition to the new Fisheries Bill is the requirement of a joint fisheries statement (JFS). This is a new piece of legislation that would require England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland to jointly set out the policies intended to fulfil the Fisheries Bill’s eight objectives. The JFS is designed as a tool to ensure coordinated management efforts between England and the devolved administrations, in particular with regards to sustainability. According to Defra, the purpose of the JFS is “to recognise that, although fisheries is devolved, none of those authorities acting alone could achieve the fisheries objectives”.

Other Changes

• According to this briefing paper for the House of Lords, through which the Fisheries Bill is passing at time of writing, the other main additions are as follows:

• Expanding on financial assistance schemes to replace the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund.

• Greater regulatory powers to devolved administrations, in particular to Scotland. These include regulations to fulfil the UK’s international obligations towards areas such as conservation or the global fishing industry.

• Allowing Wales (and England) to sell quotas for a year to other vessels of the same nation. This is likely in anticipation of quota increases for Welsh and English vessels, which they may not immediately have the capacity to fulfil.

There is also one significant omission in the new Fisheries Bill. The original Bill included an amendment that required the Secretary of State to pursue two specific negotiating objectives when involved in post-Brexit EU negotiations. The objectives were to determine fishing opportunities through annual UK-EU negotiations, and to restrict access for EU fishing boats, unless UK fishing opportunities exceed what they would have been within the CFP. The previous government stated that this clause was included to “enshrine [a] commitment to secure a fairer share of fishing opportunities for UK fishermen”. The current government has not included the clause, saying that objectives such as these are “not necessary nor the constitutional norm”, in line with other Brexit-related negotiations.

The Future of the Bill

How the Bill will ultimately look when it comes into force depends on several factors. There will almost certainly be amendments, suggested by Peers and MPs, as the Bill progresses through the Houses of Parliament. It is also partly contingent on the results of negotiations concerning a new UK-EU fisheries agreement, which is scheduled to be completed by 1 July 2020. The APPG on Fisheries Secretariat is happy to address any questions concerning the Fisheries Bill and its developments; you can get in touch at secretariat@fisheriesappg.org

Please note that the APPG on Fisheries Secretariat is independently managed, and does not speak on behalf of the government. If you wish to quote any of the APPG’s publications, please get in touch.

‘Resist changes to quota system’ says SW operator.

Threat to investment at a difficult time

A leading South West vessel operator says that moves to challenge the existing quota allocation system are wrong and should be opposed, because they would undermine confidence and threaten investment to modernise the fleet
Waterdance Ltd says that amid the uncertainties of Brexit, now is ‘the wrong time to be considering any fundamental changes to the industry that could risk undermining confidence and lead to reduced investment’.

The company, which operates over 20 boats based in Devon and Cornwall, including beam trawlers, netters, potters and scallopers, and is a significant holder of FQAs, made its comments after prime minister Boris Johnson’s recent visit to Brixham. The PM visited the port’s fishmarket and spoke to industry representatives, including Waterdance director Rowan Carter (Fishing News, 5 September, ‘PM: ‘We’ll prevent plundering of UK waters’’).

Rowan Carter said that as well as Brexit, domestic fisheries legislation in the form of the fisheries bill and the white paper was ‘a key issue’. This amounted to the most comprehensive legislative exercise concerning UK domestic fisheries for decades, and any changes made could be of crucial importance to the successful future of the UK fishing industry.

Waterdance said that the movement to challenge the current quota allocation system should be resisted. “The current quota system has been hugely successful in incentivising good stewardship of fish stocks by the private sector, as increases in stocks, and so quotas, create more commercial opportunities. Many millions of pounds have been invested in quotas to create compliant business models in the fishing industry,” the company told Fishing News.

Director Rowan Carter said: “As quotas are a major investment in fishing businesses, a threat to the quota system seriously undermines the ability to secure investment in order to modernise and grow the fishing fleet in the UK. Against the backdrop of Brexit, it seems to be the wrong time to be considering such changes.”

The firm said that the move in recent times by the devolved administrations to top-slice quota had already led to unwelcome disruption to FQA holders – some quotas had been granted to inshore vessels that they were unable to fish, due to the stock occurring in deep waters.

“The top-slicing policy has also led to oversupply of quotas for inshore vessels compared to larger vessels in membership of producer organisations,” said Waterdance.

“For example, with respect to commercially important stocks such as Western Channel sole (7e) and South West haddock (7b-k), the inshore boats have three to four times more quota than the members of the Cornish and South West FPO pool vessels, which plainly does not make sense.

“The administration of the quota withheld as ‘currency’ for fishing trials by virtue of the top-slicing policy has also been poor, resulting in policy U-turns where Area 7 monkfish and megrim quotas withheld for the start of 2019 were released on 31 July, causing disruption to in-year quota trading, and so fishing plans.”

Martyn Youell, quota and fisheries manager for Waterdance, commented: “Policies such as top-slicing risk undermining the efficiency of the UK fleet and reduce the overall fleet’s ability to exploit the resources of the waters surrounding the UK. Changes such as top-slicing, and any further changes to domestic legislation that act so as to undermine the FQA system, should be avoided.”

The fisheries bill is currently passing through parliament, and gives the government powers to change the UK fisheries management regime after Brexit. (Ed: The Fisheries Bill will not be passed since parliament was prorogued in the early hours of this morning)

One amendment to the bill that has been tabled aims to end the FQA system by stopping historic catch records being one of the criteria used when allocating quota. FQAs were introduced in 1999 to bring stability to the quota system and have been central to quota management ever since. Trading in quotas was permitted in 2002.

The amendment to the fisheries bill has been tabled by green NGOs and others who argue that the current system is too heavily weighted towards bigger vessel operators and POs, and does not give a fair share of quotas to under-10m and non-sector vessels.

Other criticisms of the quota system and FQAs include that they concentrate quota ownership in the hands of a few, that speculative trading by non-active fishermen raises quota leasing costs to non-economic levels, that it prevents new entrants joining the industry, and that it enables takeover of UK quotas by foreign owners.

There are also powers in the fisheries bill to enable the government to conduct trials of effort control management measures as an alternative to quotas. Fisheries minister George Eustice has said that some sort of dual system may be the best way forward, with effort control for smaller inshore vessels and quotas for bigger boats working further offshore.

All these issues will be discussed at the forthcoming two-day Inshore Fisheries Conference, due to be held in London on 8-9 October.

Full story courtesy of Fishing News:

Parliamentarians pull together to promote UK fishing

Cross-party Westminster body opens membership to fisheries sector

MPs and Peers with a keen interest in the UK fishing industry have today announced a new programme of activity for the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Fisheries. The Group, which has been meeting as a dedicated cohort of Parliamentarians with coastal constituencies and interests for a number of years, is now opening its doors to the fisheries sector in its broadest sense, to foster discussions around the future of the industry, and promote UK fishing, at the heart of Parliament. 

Co-Chaired by Conservative MP Sheryll Murray and Labour's Melanie Onn MP, and with an influential Parliamentary membership covering the four corners of the country, the Group will now welcome fishermen, fishing representatives, academics, environmentalists, retail and others into its non-Parliamentary membership for the first time. Why? Because fishing has never been more prominent in public discourse, says Co-Chair Sheryll Murray: "it's wonderful to see our industry getting serious recognition for everything it contributes to the UK - as a food-provider, an employer and a vital part of our culture. We want to reflect that vibrancy of the industry in our meetings in Parliament, and we're looking forwards to a new programme of events that will welcome voices straight from deck, the market, the fishmonger's...this is an exciting time to be talking fish in Parliament." 

Melanie Onn MP added "With fish processing being such a huge employer in my constituency, Great Grimsby, I was delighted to join Sheryll as a Co-Chair of the Group, and I'm now even more thrilled that we have the chance to broaden our discussions and welcome a new type of membership. I'm looking forwards to hearing directly from the industry on what their priorities are in 2019 and beyond". 

The Group’s programme of open activity will commence in Spring of this year, with events scheduled around key themes of interest to fishing, processing and coastal communities. Brexit will be on the menu, and the Group’s Parliamentarians are focused on a positive, common exploration of how the UK industry can continue to be a sustainability leader, an attractive employer and an innovator in the face of, and supported by, policy changes to come. The issue of recruitment into fishing careers takes centre stage for the first public event, to be held on Tuesday the 7th of May. 

Supporting Secretariat services for the APPG, The Fishmonger’s Company welcomed the announcement of a new events programme for the Group. 

The Company’s Fisheries Director Andrew Wallace commented “This is a striking opportunity to convene valuable events around some of the big questions of the day for fish, fishing, processing and the supply chain, and it’s wonderful to have a group of Parliamentarians so involved in the issues at hand, and ready to contribute to these discussions so actively. This Group will showcase best practice, new ideas, and inform debate within both Houses – we encourage anyone with an interest to contact the Secretariat for more information”. 

Visit the new APPG on Fisheries website: www.fisheriesappg.org

Consideration of the Legislative Consent Memorandum for the UK Fisheries Bill: evidence session with representatives of the fishing industry

Agenda - Climate Change, Environment and Rural Affairs Committee

1       Introductions, apologies, substitutions and declarations of interest

(09.15)                                                                                                             

2       Consideration of the Legislative Consent Memorandum for the UK Fisheries Bill: evidence session with academics

(09.15-10.15)                                                                           (Pages 20 - 42)

Professor Richard Barnes, Associate Dean for Research – University of Hull

Griffin Carpenter, Senior Researcher – New Economic Foundation

Dr Bryce Stewart, Programme Leader BSc / MEnv Environmental Science – University of York

3       Consideration of the Legislative Consent Memorandum for the UK Fisheries Bill: evidence session with representatives of the fishing industry

(10.15-11.15)                                                                           (Pages 43 - 54)

Jim Evans, Chairman – Welsh Fishermen’s Association

Jon Parker, CamNesa

Jeremy Percy, Director – New Under Ten Fishermen’s Association

Break (11.15-11.25)

4       Consideration of the Legislative Consent Memorandum for the UK Fisheries Bill: evidence session with environmental organisations

(11.25-12.25)                                                                           (Pages 55 - 64)

Debbie Crockard, Greener UK

Sarah Denman, UK Environment Lawyer - ClientEarth

Emily Williams, Wales Environment Link

5       Paper(s) to note

(12.25)                                                                                                             

5.1   Correspondence from the Minister for Environment, Energy and Rural Affairs to the Chair regarding the UK Fisheries Bill – Supplementary Legislative Consent Memorandum

                                                                                                 (Pages 65 - 66)

5.2   Correspondence from the Chair to the Minister for Environment, Energy and Rural Affairs regarding the UK Government's Draft Environment (Principles and Governance) Bill

                                                                                                 (Pages 67 - 70)

5.3   Correspondence from the Chair to the Minister for Environment, Energy and Rural Affairs regarding the consideration of the Legislative Consent Memorandum for the Fisheries Bill

                                                                                                 (Pages 71 - 75)

6       Motion under Standing Order 17.42 (vi) to resolve to exclude the public from item 7 of  today's meeting

(12.25)                                                                                                             

7       Legislative Consent Memorandum for the UK Fisheries Bill: consideration of oral evidence

(12.25-12.40

Meeting papers can be read here:

Live from Parliament - Scrutiny of the 2018 Fisheries Bill and the Landing Obligation committee meetings.

Implementation and enforcement of the EU landing obligation

This morning live from the Environment Committee meeting: Implementation and enforcement of the EU landing obligation

10:05

Witness(es): Mr John Tuckett, CEO, Marine Management Organisation Mr Michael Coyle, Head of Compliance and Control, Marine Management Organisation Mr Julian Roberts, Head of Future Fisheries , Marine Management Organisation Mr Allan Gibb, Head of Sea Fisheries Division, Marine Scotland


And running at the same time in another committee room:


The Fisheries Bill receives another reading:

The morning session:

Witnesses: Chris Williams, Senior Programme Manager, New Economics Foundation, Dr Thomas Appleby, representative, Blue Marine Foundation, and Martin Salter, Head of Campaigns, The Angling Trust
Witnesses: Helen McLachlan, representative, Greener UK, Dr Abigail McQuatters-Gollop, Lecturer in Marine Conservation, University of Plymouth

Starting 9:30am there were two panels discussing the #fisheriesbill

Panel 1:
- Chris Williams @NEF
- Dr Thomas Appleby @Bluemarinef
- Martin Salter @AnglingTrust

Panel 2:
- Dr Abigail McQuatters-Gollop @anaturalstate
- Helen McLachlan @wwf_uk

The afternoon session:

Background

The Committee have heard from a range of witnesses, including fishermen, conservation organisations and fisheries researchers, about the EU landing obligation. The obligation, which comes fully into force from January 2019, require fishermen to land all fish they catch rather than discard some back into the sea. The Committee have heard concerns about the impact this will have on fishermen’s livelihoods and about the difficulties there will be in monitoring compliance with the new rules.

Likely areas of questioning

• Is the UK ready and able to fully implement the landing obligation from January?
• What additional resources will be needed to monitor compliance?
• What steps are being taken to protect the fishing industry, and how will this be balanced with the need to protect fish stocks and prevent overfishing?
• What impact will leaving the EU have on implementing the landing obligation?

Witnesses:

George Eustice MP, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Anne Freeman, Deputy Director for Domestic Fisheries and Reform, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Location
Room 5, Palace of Westminster

Live Fisheies Bill committee meeting - Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee Wednesday 5 December 2018 Meeting started at 9.33am, ended 11.17am

Yesterday @CommonsEFRA had two public evidence sessions for our short inquiry scrutinising the Fisheries Bill

The first meeting started at 9.33am, ended 11.17am.

Members present: 

Neil Parish (Chair); Alan Brown; John Grogan; Dr Caroline Johnson; Mrs Sheryll Murray; David Simpson; Angela Smith.

Witnesses:

Dr Carl M. O'Brien CBE CStat CSci FLS, Defra Chief Fisheries Science Adviser & UK Delegate to ICES, Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science
Dr Craig McAngus, Lecturer in Politics, School of Media, Culture and Society, University of the West of Scotland
Councillor John Lamb, Chair, Kent and Essex Inshore Fishery Conservation Authority

The second meeting started at 2.51pm, ended 5.09pm


Make a note in your diary for the next meetings:

12 December 2018 9:30 am
Oral Evidence Session Scrutiny of the Fisheries Bill
Witnesses
Chris Williams, Senior Programme Manager, New Economics Foundation
Dr Thomas Appleby, representative, Blue Marine Foundation
Martin Salter, Head of Campaigns, The Angling Trust
Helen McLachlan, representative, Greener UK
Dr Abigail McQuatters-Gollop, Lecturer in Marine Conservation, University of Plymouth

Location: Room 8, Palace of Westminster

12 December 2018 2:45 pm
Oral Evidence Session
Scrutiny of the Fisheries Bill

Witnesses:

George Eustice MP, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Anne Freeman, Deputy Director for Domestic Fisheries and Reform, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Location: Room 5, Palace of Westminster
Witnesses:

George Eustice MP, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Anne Freeman, Deputy Director for Domestic Fisheries and Reform, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Location: Room 5, Palace of Westminster

Second reading and debate of the Fisheries Bill 2017-19 in Parliament.

The Fisheries Bill - setting out the UK's vision of the future for UK Fishing pre and post-Brexit was given its second reading and debated in a not very well attended House of Commons yesterday.

You can watch/listen to the debate in full in the video above.

Below is a list of contributors to the reading which lasted for two and a half hours. A full transcript from Hansard is available below to read online or download. These files are easily searchable word by word using (Ctrl+F) in any Windows or Command+F on a Mac.

Legislation - Fisheries Bill 2017-19 - 2nd reading

14:26:39 Rt Hon Michael Gove MP, The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Surrey Heath, Conservative)

15:07:47 Sue Hayman MP (Workington, Labour)

15:24:25 Neil Parish MP (Tiverton and Honiton, Conservative)

15:38:15 Deidre Brock MP (Edinburgh North and Leith, Scottish National Party)

15:54:49 Rt Hon Owen Paterson MP (North Shropshire, Conservative)

16:04:28 Angela Smith MP (Penistone and Stocksbridge, Labour)

16:13:59 Mrs Sheryll Murray MP (South East Cornwall, Conservative)

16:24:12 Angus Brendan MacNeil MP (Na h-Eileanan an Iar, Scottish National Party)

16:36:47 David Duguid MP (Banff and Buchan, Conservative)

16:44:22 Rt Hon Alan Campbell MP (Tynemouth, Labour)

16:54:03 Scott Mann MP (North Cornwall, Conservative)

17:01:17 Rt Hon Mark Francois MP (Rayleigh and Wickford, Conservative)

17:02:38 Rt Hon Mark Francois MP (Rayleigh and Wickford, Conservative)

17:03:07 Rt Hon Alistair Carmichael MP (Orkney and Shetland, Liberal Democrat)

17:10:27 Mr Charles Walker MP (Broxbourne, Conservative)

17:17:06 Brendan O'Hara MP (Argyll and Bute, Scottish National Party)

17:23:11 Rt Hon Priti Patel MP (Witham, Conservative)

17:29:19 Ian Paisley MP (North Antrim, Democratic Unionist

17:37:57 Richard Drax MP (South Dorset, Conservative)

17:43:59 Melanie Onn MP (Great Grimsby, Labour)

17:51:21 Peter Aldous MP (Waveney, Conservative)

17:56:21 Liz Saville Roberts MP (Dwyfor Meirionnydd, Plaid Cymru)

18:00:55 Steve Double MP (St Austell and Newquay, Conservative)

18:05:55 Owen Smith MP (Pontypridd, Labour)

18:11:00 Derek Thomas MP (St Ives, Conservative)

18:16:20 Jim Shannon MP (Strangford, Democratic Unionist Party)

18:21:07 Gillian Keegan MP (Chichester, Conservative)

18:26:35 Maria Caulfield MP (Lewes, Conservative)

18:30:36 Douglas Ross MP (Moray, Conservative)

18:43:36 Luke Pollard MP (Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport, Labour (Co-op))

18:51:31 George Eustice MP, The Minister of State, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Camborne and Redruth, Conservative)


A full transcript from Hansard is available below to read online or download. These files are easily searchable word by word using (Ctrl+F) in any Windows or Command+F on a Mac.

Local MP for St Ives (in which ward Newlyn exists) Derek Thomas spoke twice during the debate:

18:10:00

Derek Thomas (St Ives) (Con)

"I am glad to follow the hon. Member for Pontypridd (Owen Smith), because he referred to the restrictions of other oceans and other controlled waters, but I can tell him that actually, when a fisherman from Newlyn launches out to sea, they have 200 miles to go before they get into any sort of international waters. At the moment, as we have heard, they are allowed to access only 7% of the cod in those waters, and so it simply makes mathematical sense that if they get more share, they will get more fish.

I welcome the opportunity to speak in this debate. As my hon. Friend the Member for St Austell and Newquay (Steve Double) said, it is a long time since Members—a Member for St Ives, for example—have had the privilege of talking about primary legislation around a UK fisheries Bill. I am grateful to the Secretary of State and the Minister for—certainly in the case of the Minister—their repeated visits to Newlyn. They were both visitors to the largest Cornish fishing community by a considerable measure. I would suggest, although I do not want to upset my hon. Friend the Member for St Austell and Newquay, that the tragedy of discard is that we probably discard more fish from Newlyn fishermen than are caught in Mevagissey. However, that is something we can discuss on another day."


Derek Thomas

"There is great quality fish from Newlyn as well. Actually, that is an important point. The quality of fish caught around the Cornish coast is significant, and it is in demand from Europe. I therefore have no doubt that we will get to the point where Europe will continue to want and buy Cornish fish.

My local fishermen welcome this Bill, broadly because its primary objective is to promote sustainable fisheries management. They know more than anyone that sustainable fisheries management arrangements are the right thing, demonstrating a respect for the oceans and its contents and delivering a future for an essential food source and for skilled employment. They know that the UK, particularly Cornwall, is already a world leader in sustainable fisheries management. Fishermen in Cornwall, through the Cornish Fish Producers Organisation, already work on many fronts to promote conservation initiatives and safe working practice, and to demonstrate their commitment to realising a sustainable future.

It is important to remind the House of the benefits of Brexit to our fishermen. We will be an independent coastal state. We will have control of access to UK waters and ensure that British fishermen get a fair deal and are able to catch more because of a commitment to sustain stocks. We will revive coastal communities. Perhaps the Secretary of State could talk to the Prime Minister, because we are concerned about permanent workers from overseas potentially being excluded through a new immigration policy, which would have a detrimental impact on our fishing sector. It would be great to get clarity on whether people from overseas who work full-time in fishing can keep their jobs. We will also be able to maintain and develop the UK industry’s role as world leaders in sustainable fisheries policy.

The Government must not extend the common fisheries policy beyond 2020 or adopt an interim arrangement allowing the EU to set rules binding UK fisheries in any sort of extended implementation period or backstop. Furthermore, the Secretary of State must confirm today that the Government will not sacrifice the potential of Brexit for the British fishing industry in any way and that they will reject any future proposals from the EU that seek to wrestle away control of access to UK waters. Should the Government back down on their promises, the Bill cannot be delivered, and we will have failed and betrayed our fishing sector.

My fishermen are watching this closely, and they understand the risks of not getting this right. They are paying their mortgages, feeding their families and paying their taxes because of the fishing they do day in, day out, and we should take that seriously when considering their futures.

The Cornish Fish Producers’ Organisation has set out three simple asks of the Government. First, it asks the Government to establish a formal advisory council to guide policy, promote collaboration between central Government, devolved Administrations and the industry and allow for ongoing dialogue in a naturally variable industry. It is important that fishermen and fishing experts are sat around the table in that advisory council.

Secondly, the CFPO asks the Secretary of State to ensure a practical approach to sustainable fisheries management. Maximum sustainable yields—a key part of the regime—could fail in the same way that the CFP has failed, so it is important that we look at many other options to secure a good, sustainable fishing industry. Finally, the CFPO asks the Secretary of State to set out a dispute resolution mechanism, so that when things go wrong, they can be properly resolved."

The debate lasted for two and a half hours - a full transcript from Hansard is available below or can be accessed online from here.

FFL - BREXIT - BOOM OR BETRAYAL FOR THE NEXT GENERATION OF BRITISH FISHERMEN?

Fishing for Leave have just posted their response to the Fisheries Bill published last week.

The CFP of “equal access to a common resource”, and “relative stability” shares of internationally agreed Total Allowable Catch (TAC) disproportionately eschewed against the United Kingdom, has deprived British coastal communities of our nations own resources.

Worse, to compound this, ill-founded, arbitrary management was imposed by bureaucracy as misguided as remote. This has wrought environmental and economic damage on a colossal scale that need not have happened.
Often missed or maligned is the degradation, emotional heartache and trauma inflicted upon one of the unique ways of life, communities and heritage within the British Isles. It has been a sad travesty and injustice perpetrated by government of all hues.

Many have seen generations of heritage and the very existence that defines who they and their families are smashed, heartbreakingly, in many instances, probably irretrievably. Brexit provides a huge opportunity to reverse all of the above by repatriating control of our resources and implementing environmentally and economically fit for purpose policy. To that end we welcome many facets of the governments white paper. Especially welcome is acknowledgment that the United Kingdom will be an independent coastal state which presents an opportunity to “implement policy and management on the UK’s terms and for the benefit of UK fishermen”.

Redressing the current arrangements and policy acknowledged as either unsatisfactory, or in need of improvement, is an “acid test” that must be delivered upon. However, we are concerned that the Fisheries White paper is aspirational but significantly lacks detail.

Some of what is written appears to be contradictory, i.e. auctioning repatriated resources vs it being a national resource for public benefit and good.
It is a particularly unsatisfactory (and a legal and diplomatically dangerous statement) that the UK will “move towards” fairer shares away from relative stability. These are instantly our resources upon leaving.

We are also concerned by advocacy of retaining of policies that will never work. Proposals of policies such as auctioning repatriated quota, or the system of allocating resources which cannot be sold for profit to cover for species that would need to be discarded to comply with quota rules, are felt to be illfounded,
ineffectual non-starters by our members and others.

Adoption and continuation of management and policies as is, whether EU or British, will see Brexit be the industries epitaph. Brexit is one unique opportunity to break from 40 years of failure. If political convenience, vested interests or opinion derived from a lack of operational experience of fishing is heeded then fishing will be another British industry consigned to museum and memory.
The paper that follows is written after consultation with not only members of Fishing for Leave but other associations and POs of a similar mind.
The following is what we all in common feel is the detail necessary to implement new, bespoke policy to achieve the proof of the pudding that we believe industry, government, NGOs and importantly the public want to see.

Future British Fisheries policy must facilitate environmentally applicable sustainable management to allow this British industry, and its dependent coastal communities, to rejuvenate and thrive. Through deriving maximum economic benefit from a national resource through a broad range of economic diversity where all fishermen and communities around these islands can prosper for generations to come.

It is vital that government now, for the first time, listens to the practical experience of those at the coal face with unrivalled operational and biological knowledge and does not pander to convenience or virtue signalling. We have been blessed with the opportunity of freedom and independence to decide and write our own future. It cannot be squandered.

Yours sincerely,
Fishing for Leave