France threatens power cuts amid talk of new ‘scallop war’ with Britain
Brussels rallied behind France yesterday in its dispute with Jersey, as the fishermen behind a seven-hour blockade of the Channel island threatened to return and begin a fresh “scallop war” with Britain.
Wading into the row, the European Commission accused Jersey of breaching the terms of the Brexit trade deal and demanded the UK intervene to stop it “discriminating” against French vessels. It added that under the Trade and Co-operation Agreement (TCA) signed last year, EU fishermen could not be subject to additional conditions and that Jersey should have notified the bloc of any changes in advance.
However, Downing Street insisted that the Crown Dependency had the “right to regulate fisheries in their waters” and commanded the full backing of the Government.
A spokesman said the UK would continue to work with Jersey to facilitate discussions with the European Commission, although sources pointed out that French ministers had repeatedly refused to engage with George Eustice, the UK’S Environment Secretary. It followed a second round of talks between Boris Johnson and Jersey’s chief minister earlier in the day, during which the British Prime Minister reiterated his “unequivocal support”.
Jersey is now proposing a new forum to bring together fishing representatives to prevent a repeat of the clashes.
Last night, a number of French fishermen warned that further action was inevitable unless Jersey backed down over new limits on French vessels fishing in its waters. They also urged the French government, which has threatened to cut off electricity supplies to the Channel island, to follow through with the threat.
“We will go back, and next time it will be war,” one French crewman said.
“It’ll be just like in the Port-enbessin,” he added, referring to one site of the scallop wars that have erupted intermittently between French and English fishermen since 2012.
France has accused Jersey of introducing unilateral restrictions on where French boats can operate and for how long, with a number of vessels also unable to secure access because they cannot prove their historical links to the fishing grounds.
Throwing its weight behind France’s claims, the European Commission said: “Any proposed management conditions have to be notified in advance to the other party, giving them sufficient time to assess and react to the proposed measures. The commission has clearly indicated to the UK that the provisions of the EUUK TCA have not been respected. Until the UK authorities provide further justifications on the new conditions, these new conditions should not apply.”
Under the trade agreement, the EU has the ability to seek redress through arbitration. The UK is confident that Jersey has complied with its requirements. Telegraph Group Ltd