June 22, 2017 — The UK will take control of access to its waters and setting quotas once it has left the European Union, according to the Queen’s Speech.
In the speech, delivered by Queen Elizabeth II in parliament on June 21, beleaguered prime minister Theresa May outlined a fisheries bill as part of legislation she plans to push through a hung parliament.
The aim of the fisheries bill is to “protect access to UK waters which are so important to Scottish fishermen” as it comes out of the EU’s Common Fisheries Policy (CFP), according to the document.
It will be “complemented by legislation to ensure that the United Kingdom makes a success of Brexit, establishing new national policies on […] fisheries”.
This will “enable the UK to set our own quotas once we have left the EU, which will both help ensure prosperity for a new generation of fishermen as well as preserve and increase fish stocks”.
There has been concern from the fisheries sector that access to UK waters could be “traded away” in negotiations.
Barrie Deas, chief executive of the National Federation of Fishermen’s Organizations, said the fisheries bill is no guarantee this won’t happen.
“This [the bill] provides for a legal framework for UK fisheries post-Brexit. It is not the negotiations, where all that needs to be said on fisheries is that the UK will, by default, no longer be subject to the provisions of the CFP, including the principle of equal access to a common resource,” he told Undercurrent News.
“There will be subsequent discussions on the form of international agreements between the UK and the EU on the management of shared stocks, access arrangements and quota shares and it will be important that the commitments made by ministers to the UK industry are secured in full,” he said.
Responding to the detail of the speech, Bertie Armstrong, chief executive of the Scottish Fishermen’s Federation, welcomed the direct mention of its fishermen.