Last week Nigel Farage led a flotilla of pro-Brexit boats up the River Thames in protest at the EU’s management of fish stocks, with the Remain camp – including rock star Bob Geldof – meeting them on the water between Tower Bridge and the Palace of Westminster.
It was all very surreal and unfortunately, despite many very real problems in coastal communities across the UK, the voices of these fishers were barely heard through the media or loudspeakers.
Here we’ve checked the statements made about UK fisheries against the facts.
How is the UK fishing fleet faring compared to other EU members?
“Here are the facts about fishing. Britain makes more money than any other country in Europe from fishing. Two, Britain has the second largest quota for fishing in Europe after Denmark. Three, Britain has the third largest landings”. Bob Geldof (The Guardian)
Assuming Bob Geldof was referring to profits with his first fact, this is correct, the UK has the highest fishing profits in the EU and they are increasing.
The second fact is also correct, as the UK receives the second largest amount of quota in the EU after Denmark. Note that some species (crab, lobster, seabass) and some regions (the Mediterranean) are not managed through quotas on catches.
Looking at landings either by weight or by value, the third fact is also correct. Some countries like Denmark shift down the graph as they land large quantities of low-priced fish.
What is happening to UK fishing jobs?
“Fish stock is that [sic] should be within the UK’s internationally recognised territorial waters are now shared our European Partners. This has led to a 60% drop in oversized landings and the loss of tens of thousands of jobs in our industry. There are now many harbours without a single commercial vessels…compare and contrast all of this with Norway who control all fishing stocks up to two hundred miles within the North Sea and has a booming commercial and angling tourism industry.” Nigel Farage (UKIP statement)
Since EU membership, there has been a drop in oversized landings and the loss of tens of thousands of jobs, although these trends were also taking place before EU membership due to overfishing and the increasing use of technology on fishing vessels. UK fishing jobs were actually declining at a faster rate before EU membership. The blue and red stars on the graph below refer to UK ascension to the EU and the beginning of quota management under the EU’s Common Fisheries Policy.
Norway is cited by Nigel Farage as having a booming industry, but using the same measures, fishing jobs are also declining in Norway and at a faster rate.
What are the actions that have been taken and could be taken by the UK government?
“We have seen in the last five years an increase in the value of the UK fishing industry of something like 20%. The point I would make is that we export every year about £1 billion-worth of fish to the EU. No country in the world has a trade agreement with the EU that does not involve tariffs—taxes—on the sale of its fish, so there is no way we would get a better deal from the outside than the deal we get on the inside. Working with our fishing communities, working with our fishermen, keeping that market open and making sure that we manage our fish stocks locally and appropriately are very much part of our plan.” David Cameron (Hansard)
It is true that while the number of vessels and fishers in the UK continues to decrease over time the value of landings has increased by approximately 20% since 2010. Much of this is due to a boom in mackerel in 2014 which is related to many factors outside of government policy.
The Prime Minister is probably correct that the UK would be hit with tariffs on seafood exports to the EU, as is still the case with Norway. This is a concern as 80% of UK landings are exported and EU members are 4 of the top 5 destinations.
“The Prime Minister will be very well aware that reforms that were made three years ago actually put the power back into the hands of member states, and it is the UK Government who have given nearly two thirds of English and Welsh fishing quotas to three companies, thus excluding the small fishing communities along our coasts.” Jeremy Corbyn (Hansard)
According to Greenpeace calculations of UK quota, using the Fixed Quota Allocation Register, three companies hold 61% of quota for England and Wales, so Corbyn’s two-thirds figure is close by not quite right. Quota concentration for the UK as a whole has not been calculated.
Jeremy Corbyn is correct that it’s up to EU Member States, like the UK, to decide who gets access to quota. This is not, however, due to reforms that were made three years ago, but has always been the case.
All major parties, including those led by Nigel Farage, David Cameron and Jeremy Corbyn, promised in their election manifestos last year to allocate more quota to small-scale coastal fisheries.
In all of the drama around flotillas and speeches on the Thames, this very practical and very immediate action that could be taken to improve the lives of small-scale fishers and coastal communities was unfortunately lost.
— source neweconomics.org