Fine #FishyFriday in May

Make the most of the weather today, change is on the way...

in addition to all the inshore fleet, fish from 11 boats filled the market this morning for the final market of the week...

with plenty of hake from west of Scilly...

and head-on mink from the prawn boats...

theres no ;et up on the octopus 'bloom' as it is called by scientists...

some cracking red mullet from the seiner...

with so many boxes leaving hardly any room to move...

its turbot time for the netters that fish with tangle gear...

and Dover time for some of the beamers not chasing 8-leggers...

there's two sides to every turbot tale...

a nice clean box of grey gurnard...

yet more of the beast from the Med...

and more...

the fish in Bay 3...

was wall-to-wall with boxes...

and yet another two box cod trip...

there's blue gold luking in there somewhere...

the point of no return for many small shellfish that succumb to the huge tentacles of these guys as they move towards the UK...

the inshore boys are enjoying the mackerel challenge...

prawners, crabbers and netters between trips...

young Sam swinging the spiders ashore...

Vision V...

Lily Anna just two of the big prawn boats working from Newlyn on this year's langoustine season...

though the grounds can prove a challenge with the wreckage still strewn all over the seabed in the Western Approaches

leading to some serious damage of trawls, this net with a missing belly and much more...

but its all smiles from the crew even though they have two days ahead of them on the quay...

putting the trawl...

 back together...

which currently fills the entire end of the quay...

in addition to the prawn boats...

a Scottish scalloper is also working from the port...

that's one way to counteract the big tide and keep the boats afloat in the harbour...

the guys who work boats of this size had nothing to shout about after the EU deal that was announced earlier this week, nothing to protect fishing inside 12 miles as they had hoped...

as restoration work work continues to bring the old quay back into use; fishing from the medieval Old Harbour was first recorded 670 years ago in 1355...

after the deal with the EU that was signed over this week one wonders if the harbour will still be a place recording fish landings in 670 years time?

 

Newlyn harbour post EU fisheries agreement announcement.

Gus Caslake from Seafish on the market this morning talking greater weaver and why the dorsal fins have been removed......

Newlyn is renowned for its diversity of fish, Couch's bream...

and those aforementioned Greater Weavers being but just two examples...

it takes two to tango...

they keep coming...

white fish from the visiting Scottish prawn trawlers made up a ig part of this morning's market offering...

a grader in action...

Newlyn is lucky enough to have Andy Reed, outgoing Fishing News editor, paying his first visit to the fish market as he puts together this year's 'Newlyn Special' feature - his final assignment before heading off on ventures anew - a big 'thank you' from the industry to Andy for such a sterling job over the years at the helm of the UK's only national weekly fishing trade paper, now in its 111th year!..

"it was this big!" says Nigel after a morning on the handline...

Barry and one of his mates, Sid the spider crab...

much of Newlyn shellfish is still exported to the EU - farmed salmon is now the biggest fish by weight of consumption in the UK, according to some, more than all other fish put together.

 

UK-EU Summit: Fisheries APPG to Meet to Scrutinise Fisheries and Related Deals

Historical context: Cornish and other Fishermen in the House of Commons demanding a 12 mile exclusive limit - in 1980!

 The All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Fisheries and will meet tomorrow 20 May to scrutinise all aspects of the UK-EU deal on fisheries, outlined today as part of the UK-EU Summit in London.

The APPG has been collating priorities for future UK-EU fishing arrangements since January, ahead of next year’s expiration of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement’s (TCA) adjustment period on fisheries. With the Government promising to secure the 'best possible outcome' for UK fishermen and women, the UK’s fishing industry was clear on their ask – that fishing would not again be made a totemic issue, to be traded against other areas.

As clearly set out in the APPG’s 2022 report, the original Brexit deal on fisheries was poorly perceived by industry for failing to live up to Government promises, quota gains that fell short of expectations, and continued access for EU vessels to UK waters. The impacts of that deal were felt at sea and on land.

From the perspective of the industry, the expiration of the adjustment period on fisheries presented an opportunity to rebalance what was felt as a poor deal on fisheries, with access to the UK’s rich waters a key point of leverage to achieving this. For businesses exporting to the EU, frictionless trade was cited as paramount. Safeguarding sustainable management of fisheries, including of non quotas species like scallops and crab were also cited as crucial.

Amidst confirmation of a twelve year deal on fisheries access, the APPG will be scrutinising the details of agreements announced today, and their implications for the long term sustainability of the UK’s fishing communities and fisheries, alongside the wider seafood sector.

As part of this, the APPG will be scrutinising the SPS deal which promises to reduce red tape for UK seafood businesses exporting to the EU and reopen key markets for live shellfish. APPG Members will also be pressing for details of supports to industry in the face of any agreed arrangements, including relating to the £360 million Fishing & Coastal Growth Fund announced today.

APPG Co-Chair Alistair Carmichael MP said, “A twelve year deal on fisheries indicates that fishing has once again been treated as a second class concern and is deeply disappointing. With the expiry of the fisheries deal adjustment period there was an opportunity to revisit and undo some of the difficulties of the Brexit deal.

"Indications that fishing has been traded for a deal in another area does a huge disservice again to the communities around our coasts. If there is a silver lining for fishermen it will be in easements for trade and stability for key export markets – but that is still far from the ‘sea of opportunity’ that was promised in the past. The APPG will be scrutinising the details and will continue to work in support of a viable future fishing industry.”

APPG Co-Chair Melanie Onn MP said, “The impact of Brexit has been significant for the UK’s fishing and seafood sectors – affecting fleets and also trade with the EU, our largest trading partner. I've seen this first hand in my own constituency of Great Grimsby and Cleethorpes, where around 6000 livelihoods are supported by processing. We welcome the improved opportunities for trade with the EU that the SPS deal announced today will enable by making it easier for producers to sell British fish to our largest trading partner.

"While sadly weighed against other objectives time and again, the fishing and seafood sectors are vitally important all around the coast of this nation, providing livelihoods, sustaining families and communities. In the face of this, since 2020 the sector has continued to work to provide nutritious food to markets. With full details, the APPG will be meeting tomorrow to discuss an updated plan of work to support the continued efforts of the catching, processing and related sectors in this, and to safeguard the future for the UK’s fleets, seafood businesses, and coastal communities."

The Francesca TO80, an English fishing boat inspected in French waters, is docked in Brest

 

The Francesca TO80, an Cornish fishing vessel, is being held at the quayside in the commercial port of Brest, while the authorities decide on its fate.

The Francesca a British fishing vessel based in Newlyn, docked at the commercial port of Brest this Sunday morning, May 18, 2025. It was inspected in French fishing waters the day before. 

The British fishing vessel inspected off the island of Batz on Saturday, May 17, 2025, in French fishing waters, was directed towards the commercial port of Brest this Sunday at around 4:30 a.m. It is located at Quai de la Douane, in the fifth dock, a secure area. It is the Francesca TO 80, is registered in the port of Truro, in Cornwall, England.

Photo courtesy of David Cormier

The prefecture in Quimper is now taking over the case, and if it deems it necessary to pursue the matter, the Brest prosecutor's office will also take over. The maritime gendarmerie is investigating. The crew, including sailors from the Baltic countries and Russia, is being held in port.

Full story courtesy of Le Télégramme.