Room for agreement on UK-EU fisheries
16 March 2020
The EU Energy and Environment Sub-Committee writes to Secretary of State George Eustice MP to summarise the key findings from its inquiry on access to UK fisheries post-Brexit.
- Letter from Lord Teverson to the Rt Hon George Eustice, 11 March 2020
- Access to UK fisheries post-Brexit
- EU Energy and Environment Sub-Committee
In February and March this year, the Committee took evidence from industry, academic and political experts about what the UK should be aiming for in its negotiations on post-Brexit access to its waters.
The Committee has now written to the Secretary of State setting out its key findings, including:
- Contrary to public rhetoric, the fishing industry is not seeking entirely to exclude EU vessels from UK water; but changing rules on who can access the 6-12 mile zone could have significant benefits for the inshore fleet
- Shifting to a new method of dividing fishing quotas is scientifically justified, but is likely to be resisted by the EU
- The devolved administrations should be in the room for the negotiations on the UK-EU fishing agreement
- Multiannual fishing plans may be a way to resolve disagreements about how frequent access negotiations should be
- Government could do more to ensure the UK-EU fishing agreement results in sustainable fishing.