Friday 14 September 2018

Fisheries MP George Eustace HoC statement on Baie de Seine scallop issue.



Yesterday, fisheries MP George Eustace made a statement to the House with regard to the Baie de Seine scallop issue between the UK and France.

Thursday 13 September 2018

NEW! Latest government report on Brexit

Fisheries: Brexit Negotiations

Published Thursday, September 6, 2018
Following Brexit, the UK will no longer be part of the EU Common Fisheries Policy. It will become an independent coastal state and be fully responsible for managing fisheries in the UK’s Exclusive Economic Zone of 200 miles.
Jump to full report



This will include setting total allowable catches (TACs), distributing quotas and determining who has access to fisheries.[1] However, access for EU vessels to UK waters and vice versa is likely to be part of any agreement reached with the EU, as part of a future relationship.The Fisheries White Paper Sustainable fisheries for future generations, published in July 2018, set out the Government’s intention to continue to co-operate closely with the EU and other coastal states on the sustainable management of fish stocks that cross borders, and states that “any decisions about giving access to our waters for vessels from the EU, or any other coastal states including Norway, will then be a matter for negotiation”.[2]

Brexit negotiations

As part of the Draft Withdrawal Agreement UK and EU have agreed there will be a transition or implementation period which will last from 30 March 2019 to 31 December 2020, during which the UK and EU have agreed that the UK will continue comply with the Common Fisheries Policy.
Beyond the transition period, the maintenance of current arrangements for sharing fisheries resources after Brexit was referred to in the European Council’s draft negotiating guidelines for a future trade deal. This linked continued existing reciprocal access to fisheries to the proposal for a zero-tariff trade agreement. However, the UK Government’s Fisheries White Paper rejected the EU’s position that access to fisheries should be linked to any trade agreement, referring to the latter as “a separate question”. There have been no detailed discussions to date between the UK and the EU on fisheries.[3]

No deal and fisheries

A no deal Brexit, in which there was no transitional agreement on fisheries until the end of 2020, would mean that the UK would become an independent coastal state from March 2019 taking over responsibility for its Exclusive Economic Zone. The UK would no longer be bound by the Common Fisheries Policy and could deny access to EU Member States’ fishing vessels.
UK exports in fish and related products to the EU were worth £1.3 billion and comprised 70% of all UK fish exports from the UK by value. Fish imports from the EU were worth £1.1 billion (34% of all fish imports to the UK by value).[4] The impact of a no deal Brexit on the fisheries industry’s ability to export and trade are likely to be felt across the sector. In addition to the impacts of any tariffs, fisheries products, as all perishable products, could be impacted by any increased delays at borders resulting from greater custom controls.
The EU Commission published a preparedness notice to stakeholders on Fisheries and Aquaculture in April 2018, setting out how UK withdrawal would impact both the UK and EU sectors in the absence of any kind of withdrawal agreement. The UK Government is also expected to publish a Technical Notice on fisheries in September.

[1]     Article 61(1) of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) states that: “The coastal State shall determine the allowable catch of the living resources in its exclusive economic zone.”
[2]     Defra, Fisheries White Paper Sustainable fisheries for future generations, published July 2018
[3]     EFRA Select Committee Evidence Session, 17 July 2018, Fisheries, Q403
[4]     UK Trade Info database, downloaded in April 2018, using product code SITC 03 – ‘Fish, crustaceans, molluscs & aq. inverts & preps thereof’
Commons Briefing papers CBP-8396
Author: Elena Ares

England's only commercial fishing exhibition - Skipper Expo 2018




Welcome to Skipper Expo Int. Bristol

Established in 2013, Skipper Expo Int. Bristol is a specially created commercial fisheries show for the English and Welsh fishing industries.

The show was founded by Mara Media, a publishing and event management company based in Co. Donegal, Ireland.

Mara Media publishes the widely respected ‘The Skipper’ magazine, a monthly publication for the Irish and UK fishing industries. Mara Media had already established Skipper Expo Int. Galway in Ireland in 2005, and Skipper Expo Int. Aberdeen in 2011, and following the success of these events, decided that the English and Welsh fishing sectors would also benefit from an all-encompassing annual fisheries exhibition.

The Bristol expo, which is now being held annually at the Ashton Gate Stadium, has proved very popular with the industry and has been growing year-on-year, with there being around 80 exhibitors at the most recent event.

The success of the show can be attributed to the fact that the expo is a great place to do business, as well as being the ideal venue for the fishing industry to network and socialise.

Such success is confirmed by the universally positive testimonials from exhibitors and visitors alike. The team at Mara Media has the philosophy of continually consulting with exhibitors and visitors to ensure the show fully meets their requirements.

Entry is free but you can pre-register here - and be entered into a free prize draw!

Tuesday evening, Wednesday morning market in Newlyn.




Ladram Sisters in Newlyn...


nothing to see here - the Penlee lifeboat house is no more...


major aluminium work continues aboard the Galilee with the construction of a three-quarter length shelterdeck...


and wheelhouse...


a huge step up from young Mr Hosking's previous boat, Nazarene...


nothing that Julian and and Terry from J.T. Fabrications can't handle...


looks like there's a few more hours work on the Crystal Sea's trawls yet...


whereas the repairs on the harbour punt are almost complete...


after she was well under the waterline while escorting a boat off the slipway...


on a relatively quiet mid-week spring tide market the buyers are in competitive mood...


especially for top restaurant favourites like these line caught bass...


while fish from the only beam trawler to land, the Trevessa IV included some of Ben Tunnicliffe at the Tolcarne's favourite fish ray


and the inevitable handful of cod...


and some more of those more summery fish, witches...


with space still at a premium un til Phase II of the market refurb is complete the buyers have to work round closely stacked boxes...


and use pallets to move any quantity owing to the excellent non-slip properties of the new floor covering...


Dover soles are seldom off the menus of the best restaurants...


while mackerel can be cooked in so many ways...


 still one of the sea's most versatile fish and rated by many top chefs...


though most of these were caught by boats fishing out of St Ives and not in Mount's Bay...


sometimes the simplest way of doing things are best, who knows, once new fish market technology is installed there will be touch screens attached to the the electronic scales for fishermen to record their landings to a central database...


well iced fish...


like these scad...


and lemons have undoubtedly benefitted from a much colder working environment in the new building...


so fish is whisked off the market floor...


 like these plaice...


and brill still buried in ice...


and even at close to 7am there is precious little morning light in the sky...


beam trawlers' nets have very low headlines so the fact that they are catching a goods few John Dory, a fish that swims high off the seabed is a good sign that there are plenty still around...


though the bulk of beam trawler trips at this time of year are megrim sole of course, most bound for the plains of Spain...


Lionel's pressure washer is in action now that the new floor has been laid throughout the market building...


yet more good news to keep young Edwin who was a key member of the Fish Market Refurbishment Programme smiling...


unlike these perennially miserable looking Dover soles...


first light sees a flurry of boats like the inshore trawler, Shiralee heading for the ice-works to take ice on board


while the Dream Catcher has gear to take off...


Falmouth based photographer Ollie gets close to the sardine action...


as Aaron adds more ice to the heavily insulated tubs...


with the ever-present gull guard looking over their shoulders...


at what must be a painful sight to watch for them as...


ton after tone (six in all) of breakfast-mouthfull-sized-sardines are brailed ashore form the Asthore...


next up to the fish market is the very spruce looking Silvery Sea resplendent in her new all-black colour scheme...


as PJ brings her in to take fresh bait on board...


along with some key pieces of fishing gear...


it's a subtle silver sea as the Silvery Sea takes on her bait across from the netter Silver Dawn during a very silver dawn - the kind of light so often captured by many of the painters in the Newlyn School.




Fish Expo 2018 coming soon!

Your Only English 

Commercial Fishing Show


See you there in 3 weeks!



Stay on top of industry trends, discover the latest technology, product demonstrations, safety advice, special offers and lots more.


* Special Offers from Tecmarine


* More show offers on Marine Blinds


* Visitors - Entry is Free, Registering beforehand is highly recommended


* Full list of your exhibitors HERE


* All your latest Show News HERE


* Traders - There is still time to book your stand, contact Sharon




The Skipper



Your Only Official Show Publication

Established in 1964, The Skipper has grown into Europe's leading commercial fishing industry and seafood sector publication. Printed as a full glossy 48 page magazine 'The Skipper' is recognised as the leading Marine Media forum for coverage of all news and events within the fishing industry.

4,500 copies - Our average monthly print run,
Bonus distribution at our shows,
Over 55,000 followers on our social media platforms.


Please contact Sharon for more information on how to promote your company to everyone at our shows and hear about our great discounts on booking a series of adverts.

Tel: 00353 (0)74 954 8037
Mob: 00353 (0)86 840 1250
Email: sharon@maramedia.ie
+353 (0)86 840 1250 
sharon@maramedia.ie

Last Chance to Win a Skipper Jacket


Wednesday 12 September 2018

Extra fishing industry protection 'won't be ready before Brexit'

Whitehall's spending watchdog says the Treasury is delaying funds for more "control and enforcement" boats and personnel.



Extra fishing industry protection is not likely to be ready by the time Britain leaves the EU, a spending watchdog has warned.

The National Audit Office (NAO) said the Treasury is refusing to release cash for new ships, aircraft and personnel to staff them because the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) has not provided a full business case.

This was meant to happen in July, but an outline case was only lodged in August.

The department estimated it would take eight months to strengthen "control and enforcement" in English waters, meaning this will not happen by March.

At the moment the UK uses a "risk-based intelligence-led approach" which makes use of a system in which EU nations share data.

Ministers want to add to this with more sea and airborne hardware, but has "not yet fully developed its plans to do this", the NAO said, noting that the fishing industry is worth £682m to the UK economy.

"DEFRA's contingency plan is to continue with the current level of surveillance and manage the associated risk of lower capacity," the NAO said in its report.

"The risk will be heightened if the UK loses access to EU intelligence and the mutual support that its current approach relies on."

It added: "In a no-deal scenario, DEFRA may have to scale up its capacity over time, but is confident that it will be able to manage the risk of any disruption in the interim."

In recent weeks footage has emerged of rival British and French vessels colliding with each other and objects being thrown - an incident referred to as 'scallop wars'.

A DEFRA spokesman said: "Since the report was written, we have continued to reprioritise our resources, expanded our workforce and made further progress on our extensive programme of work focused on preparing for a range of Brexit scenarios.

"Our work will mean that environmental, welfare, and biosecurity standards will continue to be met in a way that supports trade and the smooth flow of goods."

The warning concerning the fishing industry was one of a number from the NAO about DEFRA's preparedness for Brexit.

It is one of the government departments most affected by the EU divorce, with 55 of the 319 EU-related "work streams" covering the chemical and agri-food industries, agriculture, fisheries and the environment.

A particular focus for the auditor was what is likely to happen in the event no deal is agreed between London and Brussels.

The NAO highlighted concerns about Britain's multi-billion pound food export industry, warning it could be badly affected by a "no-deal" Brexit due to a failure on the part of the government to hire enough vets.

ex- Brexit Minister Steve Baker claims at least 80 MP's are prepared to vote against PM's Chequers plan. It said valuable products and livestock could be blocked or help up at the UK's ports and airports because of a shortage of qualified staff to sign off new export health certificates (EHC) covering EU countries.

The spending watchdog said work to "engage publicly with the veterinary market" was due to start in April but has still not been authorised by the government.

As a result, DEFRA will "launch an emergency recruitment campaign in October to at least meet minimum levels of vets required".

If there is no deal, Britain would need to introduce 1,400 new UK versions of documents covering trade with 154 countries outside the EU.

However, the NAO said DEFRA will only have time by March to focus on producing certificates for 15 nations which comprise 90% of exports to non-EU countries.

Amyas Morse, the head of the NAO, said: "The scale and complexity of what needs to be done to leave the EU is a significant challenge and DEFRA is impacted more than most.

"It has achieved a great deal, but gaps remain and with six months to go it won't deliver all it originally intended in the event of no deal, and when gaps exist, it needs to focus on alternatives and mitigations.

"Like other departments, it now must ensure its voice is heard by the centre of government to provide an accurate picture of what is possible if a negotiated settlement is not reached, and even if it is."

A DEFRA spokesman said the report also said the department had "already achieved a great deal in its preparations" for Brexit, including new IT systems and "new services to replace those currently provided by the EU".

Full story courtesy of By Alan McGuinness, political reporter for Sky News.

Tuesday 11 September 2018

Entitlement of quota - FFL viewpoint.

Answering FFLs Position On Fishing Entitlement




REPATRIATED RESOURCES

FFL are adamant that all repatriated quota is held as a national resource and is divided out to all fishermen in a community.

Under the principle of one ton to one boat. If someone doesn't use their slice it goes back in the pot to be divided again.

That is what we've represented to the highest levels of government repeatedly and has had some acknowledgement in the white paper.

This is in spite of the SFF insisting all repatriated resources are distributed through the current Fixed Quota Allocation (FQA) system which has facilitated consolidation.

ECONOMIC LINK

We are adamant their needs to be a stronger economic link that British fishing vessels must comply with.

This is to realise what all policy should aim to deliver - that is maximum benifit from a national resource to communities. Whether through administration or sustainability.

We advocate 60% British ownership and 60% British crew - with a five year dispensation for 100% foreign in all waters. This is until new policy attracts British lads to a post Brexit industry on the up.

Most importantly, it must be stipulated that 60% of catches must be landed, sold and processed in the UK. This would revitalise ports, processors and their buying power.

Any foreign vessel granted access must also land here to deliver economic benifit from resources caught in our waters and ensure complaince.

This is to clamp down on flagships and stop them behaving like fishing tourists. Be a genuine British boat or pack your bags.

SLIPPER SKIPPERS & QUOTA RENT

We have been the only fishing organisation to highlight slipper skippers. Michael Gove hadn't been informed of this blight that until FFL had meetings with him.

We are adamant that slipper skippers should be banned, that any boat to boat rent is capped at 3% of the gross realised on that quota.

This is to end the financial illiteracy of ever more money being thrown at quota.

It's curently bleeding 40-60% of profit from the fleet. It is stifling reinvestment and curtailing wages which would incentivise young men.

Any fishing entitlement should be under the same stipulations as in Norway and other Nordic countries. Entitlement must be held on an active vessel, if not within two years you must use it or lose it.

QUOTAS WILL NEVER WORK

Quotas will never provide accurate science, as you only see caught what the quota is set to - not the natural predominance or fluctuations of stocks.

They will never conserve fish as we either discard to find what we can keep or stop the fleet on exhausting their lowest quota with choke species under the discard ban.

They mean we will always harvest out of balance with nature as we are imposing our own targets and trying to hit them.

Anyone advocating retention of quotas is seditiously trying to protect vested interests or doesn't have a clue about the practicalities of a mixed fishery such as ours.

They'll never work for fishermen due to the above because you either have to spend more time and money at sea discarding or choke and go bust.

As the system doesn't work its been a race to the bottom buying ever more Fixed Quota Allocation (FQA) unit entitlement to stagnate (FQAs = quota stocks and shares).

This drives consolidation to a few big corporates, killing coastal comminities and heritage that draws young men to an otherwise hard occupation.

All through nothing more than stupid policy where a select few hope they'll pockle the system to be the last men standing.

Those few MPs standing behind a federation that advocates this for an easy ride/sell should hang their head in shame.

Having a few big companies in a few big ports won't secure coastal communities and constituencies.

REFINED EFFORT CONTROL

That's why FFL advocates a system of refined effort control with Flexible Catch Compositions ( FCCs). We're happy the government proposes trials but they must be meaningful not designed to fail. They must crack on asap and not listen to those trying to stop them.

If the system won't work there is nothing to lose or hide from trying it, but everything to gain if it succeeds.

Under such a system everyone is limited to an equal, sustainable amount of fishing 'soak' time monitored by sensors as hours gear is deployed.

Such a system automatically solves and delivers allowing everyone big or small, static gear or mobile, an equal opoortunity to reach their potential and make a living.

Soak time is derived from calculating how long it would take the whole fleet to catch all the resources in a sea area amalgamelated together.

This makes it's impossible to overfish an ecology as we do currently discarding over the limits to find what we can keep under quotas.

FQAs are converted to FCCs which give the sustainable mix of species you should aim to catch. This preserves the investment and entitlement in FQAs for the bigger holders.

Exceed those percentage and you can keep what you catch. This means you've caught less but can land more and provides accurate data.

However, to stop a race to fish for high value or vulnerable species, any 'wrong' fish incurs a penalty of time equivelant to the value of the fish.

The 'wrong' fish pays for the time but there's no benifit to target the wrong mix as it curtails your year.

As there's time for the crime science knows what it sees is an accurate reflection of stocks and we'll get the TAC mix into line.

As there's no quotas and everyone gets a slice of time to fish it means; No rent. No consolidation and a chance to have a profitable industry that gives young lads a chance to make a career from deck to wheelhouse.

Most importantly as accurate catch per hour per size/type of gear is recorded it delivers a highly accurate Catch per Unit of Effort (CPUE) system.

This is the holy grail of accurate science to deliver sustainable fishing which reflects and is in line with natures fluctuations.

CONCLUSION

That's what FFL advocates. Sadly too many are stuck in the rut and don't want to get out.

Either people chose that vision above or keep the same old system, as the SFF and NFFO advocate, and the managed decline to the last few it causes.

That's why FFL, and its founder especially, were demonized by a few in the industry post referendum by folk in thrawl to big interests.

Although if it hadn't been for founding FFL and driving it to the Thames flotilla and onwards fishing wouldn't be on the map, with the federations hiding behind neutrality.

Everyone see's the way it's going but are others brave enough to put their head above the parapet and say enough, change course.?

www.ffl.org.uk/0809-2/