The UK Government has confirmed today it will take back full control of UK waters and that this is not-negotiable in any future Brexit deal.
The Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Michael Gove MP will today announce the plans, contained in a new White Paper on Fishing.
In the White Paper, the UK Government will confirm the UK will become an independent coastal state, will move towards a fairer share of fishing quotas and will resist any attempt by the EU to link access to UK waters with market access for fisheries products. EU Member States currently land around eight times as much fish in the UK waters than the UK does in EU Member States’ waters.
It also proposes an end to wasteful discards and a move towards a system of zonal attachment, meaning that any quotas for UK and foreign vessels fishing in the North Sea will be based on the distribution of fish stock rather than historical data.
The White Paper has been strongly welcomed by the Scottish Fishermen’s Federation and the National Federation of Fishermen’s Organisation.
The news has been welcomed by Berwickshire MP John Lamont who has repeatedly said he will not support any Brexit deal which does not allow the UK to regain control over its own fishing waters. Earlier on in the year, John strongly criticised the UK Government for agreeing to remain part of the Common Fisheries Policy until the end of 2020, as part of a transition deal with the EU.
In the year 2000, there were an estimated 184 fishermen in Berwickshire and the industry supported many more jobs in fish processing. In 2016, employment in the industry had fallen so dramatically, that it was recorded as being zero in official statistics.
John Lamont MP said: “I am very pleased the UK Government has confirmed we will regain control over fishing in UK waters after the transitional period. I have been clear that without this assurance I would be unable to support the final Brexit deal.
“It was really important that fishing was not used as a bargaining chip to get access for the UK for the EU market in some other industry and the confirmation that access to UK waters is non-negotiable is very welcome.
“Hundreds of jobs have been lost in the past decade in Berwickshire due to the decline of the fishing industry and the impact of the Common Fisheries Policy.
“Brexit now gives us a real opportunity to reverse this trend and to bring more fishing and fish processing back to the Berwickshire coast.”