EIP 2025
For crews working the western approaches, the government’s Environmental Improvement Plan 2025 lays out a wide-ranging agenda for cleaner seas, stronger protection of marine habitats and a more tightly managed fishery. On paper it promises healthier waters and sustainable stocks. In practice it signals a round of rules, reviews and by-laws that will be felt across the fleets out of Newlyn, Mevagissey and the Isles of Scilly.
Protection, by-laws and access to grounds
Front and centre is the push to complete and strengthen management across England’s network of Marine Protected Areas. The plan sets a clear deadline: conservation by-laws for all MPAs by the end of 2026, with further measures brought in where needed. Highly Protected Marine Areas are part of the picture too, though the locations and detail are still to come.
For Cornish boats working the traditional grounds, this means more scrutiny — and the real possibility of new restrictions in places that have supported local fleets for decades. Nothing is set in stone yet, but the direction of travel is plain.
Fisheries Management Plans — where the real detail will land
EIP 2025 ties its fisheries commitments directly to the Fisheries Act and the continued roll-out of Fisheries Management Plans. Five new plans are due by the end of this year, with more promised in 2026. These plans will shape day-to-day fishing: technical rules, mesh requirements, potential closures, stock controls and seasonal measures. For a mixed Cornish fleet — hake, monk, sole, haddock, sardines, spurdog — the fine print will matter far more than ministerial statements.
Monitoring, enforcement and VMS
Expect firmer monitoring. The plan commits to universal Vessel Monitoring System coverage for every vessel licensed in English waters. Many Cornish boats already carry VMS, but universal coverage closes the gaps in the picture regulators rely on. It may remove some of the quieter corners and flexibility smaller fleets have worked with for years.
Money, quaysides and cleaner water
There are opportunities, if the funding reaches the right places. The Fishing and Coastal Growth Fund — a long-term investment pot — promises support for training, gear development, harbour upgrades and local infrastructure. Alongside that comes significant investment aimed at reducing sewage overflows, cutting pollution and tackling microplastics. Those changes could bring long-term gains for shellfish, inshore grounds and the wider marine environment.
What this could mean for Newlyn’s netters
The impact on boats working selective, low-impact gears — such as the gill-netters out of Newlyn — will depend entirely on how national measures are applied locally. Selective fisheries that already operate with minimal bycatch could suffer if broad, one-size-fits-all rules are imposed to address problems found elsewhere. Ensuring that local knowledge and proven, low-impact practice are properly weighed in the drafting of by-laws and FMPs will be vital if smaller fleets are to remain viable.
The months ahead
EIP 2025 sets the framework. The real outcomes will be shaped by the next wave of consultations: MPA by-law drafting, publication of the new FMPs, and decisions on future spatial protection. These processes will determine how much access Cornish fleets retain to their traditional grounds — and whether the next generation can still make a future in the same waters.
The full report on the EIP can be seen here.
