Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
FRENCH GRAB BRIT BOAT IN FISH FIGHT
Seizure ramps up dispute ‘Pawn’ in row over licences
THE battle between the UK and France over Channel fishing rights has exploded after French authorities detained one British trawler and fined the skipper of another.
There has been massive tension over agreeing fishing licences since Brexit.
And this escalated on Wednesday when French police patrol boats stopped two British trawlers fishing in the Baie de Seine, off the coast of Le Havre.
Andrew Brown, director of Scottish boat owner Macduff Shellfish, said: “Scallop vessel Cornelis was boarded by the French authorities and ordered into Le Havre while legally fishing in French waters.
“Our vessel is another pawn in the dispute between the
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UK and France on the implementation of the Brexit fishing agreement.”
The Cornelius was still in Le Havre yesterday and its crew are said to be in good spirits and staying aboard. The French seas ministry said punishments may include confiscation of its catch and immobilisation of the vessel pending payment. Minister Annick Girardin, 57, said that checks on the British vessels are standard during the scallop fishing season. But she added they had also been undertaken against “the backdrop of the tightening of controls in the Channel, in the context of discussions on licences with the UK and the European Commission”.
She said France will be speaking to the EU about retaliatory measures, including blocking British vessels from landing their catch in France and potentially cutting power to Jersey and Guernsey.
Barrie Deas, from the National Federation of
Fishermen’s Organisations,
which represents British fishers, descibed the descent into a tit-for-tat relationship as “unhelpful”.
Downing St has warned France against taking disproportionate action.
A spokesman said: “We regret the confrontational language that has been consistently used by the French.
“We repeat that the Government has granted 98% of licence applications from EU vessels to fish in the UK’S waters.”
France claims it has not received the correct number of licences and from Tuesday it will impose extra customs checks on British goods entering France, causing more disruption.
Its EU affairs minister, Clément Beaune, vowed that France will “now use the language of force”.