Saving Seafood

EU fishing deal ‘far from acceptable’ to Scottish industry

November 20, 2018 — The industry had expected the UK to withdraw from the Common Fisheries Policy on the day of leaving the EU.

But the UK government has now agreed to be “consulted” on arrangements with the EU continuing to set quotas.

The Scottish Fishermen’s Federation said it falls “far short of an acceptable deal”.

The UK government has denied betraying its promise to “take back control” of the UK’s fishing waters after Brexit.

A spokesman for Prime Minister Theresa May said: “We have secured specific safeguards on behalf of British fishermen.”

He said the deal specified that in 2019 “there is a commitment that the UK’s share of the total catch cannot be changed”.

The spokesman added that, from 2020, “we’ll be negotiating as an independent coastal state and we’ll decide who can access our waters and on what terms”.

The UK and the EU said they had agreed on a “large part” of the deal that will lead to the “orderly withdrawal” of the UK.

Brexit negotiators Michel Barnier and David Davis said they had agreed terms for a transition period, calling the announcement a “decisive step”.

The transitional period is set to last from 29 March 2019 to December 2020, and is intended to smooth the path to a future permanent relationship.

Both the UK and the EU hope the terms of an agreement on the transitional period can be signed off by Prime Minister Theresa May’s fellow leaders at the EU summit this week.

Bertie Armstrong, of the Scottish Fishermen’s Federation, said the Scottish industry did not trust the EU to look after its interests.

Read the full story at BBC News

 

Terms agreed for Brexit transition, interim fisheries arrangements

March 21, 2018 — Brexit negotiators have agreed on many of the terms for a time-limited implementation period that they believe will provide greater assurances for businesses and citizens across the European Union and the United Kingdom during the separation process.

A transition period is set to last from 29 March 2019 to December 2020, which David Davis, U.K. secretary of state for exiting the E.U., said gives everyone the time they need to prepare for the future, by ensuring access to each other’s markets continues on current terms.

“Businesses need not delay investment decisions, or rush through contingency plans based on guesses about the future deal,” he said. “Instead they now have certainty about the terms that will apply immediately after our withdrawal. Meaning that they can continue to operate and invest with confidence, as the design of our future partnership with the European Union becomes clear.”

Davis also confirmed that specific safeguards had been agreed with regard to the annual fishing negotiations.

“These arrangements will only apply for the negotiations in 2019, since we will still be a member state for those that take place at the end of this year. Through 2020 we will be negotiating fishing opportunities as an independent coastal state, deciding who can access our waters and on what terms,” Davis said. “For the year where it is relevant, we have agreed the European Union will have to consult us ahead of the negotiations. And the United Kingdom’s share of the total catch cannot be changed, protecting the interests of the United Kingdom fishing community.”

However, in a statement, Bertie Armstrong, chief executive of the Scottish Fishermen’s Federation (SFF), said the new agreement falls far short of an acceptable deal.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

 

Queen’s Speech confirms UK plans to control access to waters, set own quotas

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.

Read the full story at Undercurrent News

MCS takes three haddock fisheries off ‘green list’

March 20, 2017 — UK-based environmental charity the Marine Conservation Society (MCS) has downgraded three haddock fisheries on its “Good Fish Guide”, citing “a change in scientific advice”.

Two North Sea haddock fisheries are now rated 4 (amber), and the other has dropped from being a good choice (rated 2) to one to eat only occasionally (rated 3). This means all three drop off the MCS’ recommended green list of fish to eat.

“These ratings changes have come about because scientfic perception of the stock has changed. Compared to 2015, the stock numbers in 2016 were below the recommended level and at the point where action is now needed to increase the number of fish of breeding age,” said Bernadette Clarke, Good Fish Guide manager.

However, Scottish fishermen’s representatives told the Guardian the move as “dressing advocacy up as science”.

Read the full story at Undercurrent News

UK fishing federations adopt united stance on Brexit

November 30, 2016 — The Scottish Fishermen’s Federation (SFF) and the National Federation of Fishermen’s Organisations (NFFO) have come to an agreement upon common principles for which they will jointly negotiate in upcoming talks on the terms of the United Kingdom’s separation from the European Union, also known as Brexit.

Following a meeting on 25 November in Edinburgh, Scotland, the two groups agreed on key outcomes they would like to achieve “to ensure the best possible deal for coastal communities in the forthcoming Brexit negotiations,” according to a press release.

“We see the UK’s departure from the E.U. and therefore the [Common Fisheries Policy] as an opportunity to address the distortions that were built into the CFP from its inception,” said Barrie Deas, chief executive of the NFFO, which represents a broad section of fishermen across England, Northern Ireland and Wales. “The U.K. industry is united that this is a once in a generation opportunity to put things right.”

Both organizations regard Brexit as an “historic opportunity,” as the U.K. regains full control of its 200-mile Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).
At the meeting between the two federations, the two organizations agreed to fight against any roll-over of the current Common Fisheries Policy and against negotiations that entangle fisheries issues other matters not related to fishing.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

European fishing body takes aim at environmental group

November 14, 2015 — A European fishing body has accused an environmental pressure group of making “misleading and untrue” statements” about the industry in an attempt to influence policy-makers.

The open letter from Europeche – whose members include the Scottish Fishermen’s Federation – is addressed to the Pew Charitable Trusts, which earlier this year published a report called Turning the Tide: Ending Over-fishing in North Western Europe.

“That report contained a number of statements which are demonstrably untrue and contrary to scientific opinion,” Europeche president Javier Garat said yesterday.

He added: “The motives for Pew to publish misleading and untrue statements remain obscure, but this is not a matter of misinterpretation of data or different opinion.

Read the full story at The Press and Journal