Iceberg in the dock

Home for the Easter break, the Crystal Sea......
and Brixham's, BM10 Emilia M Emiel.....both landing their fish away from Newlyn...
This sea-defense for the fishermen's memorial statue must have cost! Many people think that 'Tom' should have been given a home down on the old quay - would have saved all this work that's for sure!
The Scillonian ferry boat to the Isles of Scilly has just started her summer season's trips, though this year, with Easter being rather early, the passengers are well wrapped in winter-woolies it seems......
Plymouth's, PH330 Admiral Gordon landing to the back of a waiting lorry....
from Iceberg Ltd in Penzance Dock....
astern of her is the Hatherleigh, now out of the dry dock. The Penzance Dry Dock Company is looking for more work with no vessels currently in the dry dock.....
looks like some deck seating is under construction on the Hatherleigh's deck...
in Newlyn, PZ100, the Elizabeth N waits for the Iceberg wagon to send her fish away. Newlyn fish market currently cannot provide the flexible landing and cold storage arrangements that, say, Plymouth can, one reason to encourage boats to land away from the port.


More historic documents that chart the background to the current situation with vessels choosing to land elsewhere:

Here are more documents from the early 1980s that show how fishermen, represented by the old Newlyn & District Fishermen's Association, actively sought support from the harbour that it would address the shortcomings of the market operations and the fish auction. The first, a letter sent to the harbour commissioners cited 10 suggestions that focussed on the means to improve the quality of fish landed to the auction through improved conditions and handling procedures. Despite being acknowledged in an official response from the Commissioners, many of the suggested improvements have yet to be adopted today.

This is a transcript of the letter outlining the 10 suggested improvements - the letter also refers to a fish reporting system - this was set up with assistance of the manager at Lands End Radio which handled all ship-to-shore radio traffic at the time. In the end it was not adopted as a service by the market.
A letter to the manger at Lands End radio confirming how the fish reporting system would work after discussions with fishermen and the Fish Merchant's Association...


Minutes from the Fish Merchants Association include discussion of the 10 suggested improvements to the market... and the Commissioners response. Many of today's skippers and boat owners, especially those who choose to land away, can draw little comfort from the historic lack of responsiveness to market forces so far evident in the market operations - when was this? - 1984.
Here is the membership list of Newlyn & District Fishermen's Association in 1977. Changing circumstances in the industry, driven by the introduction of quotas, saw the association eventually superceded by the CFPO. Both, were founded by the two champions of the Cornish fishing industry at the time, George and Daphny Lawry who devoted much of their time to help fight political issues of the day which began with the negotiations around the much-hated Common Fisheries Policy and the UK's accession to Europe.