Hammond accused of betraying fishermen
Philip Hammond has been accused of betraying fishermen after he said he was “open” to allowing EU trawlers into British waters after Brexit. The Chancellor said the Government was prepared to negotiate with Brussels over a “reciprocal” fishing deal, despite promises that Britain would take back control of its waters. Alan Hastings, of the Fishing for Leave pressure group, said Mr Hammond appeared to be “softening us up for a big disappointment”.
PHILIP HAMMOND has been accused of bargaining with Britain’s fishing industry to get a better Brexit deal for the City after he said he was “open” to allowing EU trawlers into UK waters.
The Chancellor said the Government was prepared to negotiate with Brussels over demands for “reciprocal access” for EU and UK fishing fleets in each other’s territories.
The EU published its draft guidelines for negotiating a trade deal, which said fishing rights must be maintained as part of any free trade agreement.
Leave campaigners and fishermen accused the Government of betraying repeated promises that Britain would be taking back control of its waters.
Alan Hastings, of Fishing for Leave, a pressure group, said: “It now seems they are trying to soften us up for a big disappointment. They are all testing the water to see how much they can get away with.”
Trawlers from the EU currently take 750,000 tons of fish from UK waters each year, with a processed value of around £4 billion. Bringing the fish back to British ports would have a profound effect on the economy of coastal communities, campaigners argue. Mr Hammond’s stance was also attacked by the Scottish Conservatives, which won seats in coastal constituencies in last year’s general election after convincing voters Brexit would bring billions of pounds back to fishing ports.
David Duguid, the Tory MP for Banff and Buchan, which includes the major fishing ports of Peterhead and Fraserburgh, said it was “clear” the proposal was “totally unacceptable”.
He added: “It should surprise no one, however, that the European Council is taking this position. The UK Government must strongly defend our fishermen and coastal communities across the country who voted to take back control of our waters.”
Mr Hammond’s call for financial services to be included in a free trade agreement was turned down flat by Donald Tusk, the European Council president, who said any future trade deal would be limited by the UK’S red lines.
A source close to Michael Gove, the Environment Secretary, said: “Michael has been clear that we need to take back control of our waters, the suggestion of the same access in future is totally unacceptable and goes against the result of the referendum.”