May tries to reassure Tory MPS on fish
THERESA May has sought to reassure Scottish Tory MPS that there will be no “trade-off” with Brussels on UK fisheries and that Britain will retake full control of its waters from December 2020.
The Prime Minister’s reassurance to her Conservative colleagues at a 20-minute private meeting in No 10 came as Michael Gove decried the EU for its “intransigence” in not agreeing that the UK should take full sovereignty of its waters after Brexit Day in 2019; this will only come at Christmas 21 months later.
But in a Commons statement the Environment Secretary issued a thinlyveiled threat to the EU27 that if during the 21-month implementation period it harmed UK fishing rights in any way, then there would be “unhappy consequences” for the remaining member states once Britain became an independent coastal nation in charge of its own waters.
After a draft transitional deal was unveiled on Monday, there were claims of betrayal because full control of UK waters would not come in March 2019, as originally promised, but almost two years later. Scottish
Conservative MPS even suggested such was the “iconic” nature of fishing to Scotland that if there were no cast-iron guarantee of taking back full control from December 2020, then they could seek to vote down the final Brexit deal.
A Commons defeat on such key legislation would almost certainly trigger the fall of the Government and a general election.
David Mundell, the Scottish Secretary, raised the fisheries issue at the weekly Cabinet, saying it was vital to get the right final deal.
Two hours later, Mrs May called in her Tory colleagues to reassure them about the safeguards British officials had won for the year from December 2019; consultation on quotas and Britain’s share would not be reduced.
Fears that UK fishing could be traded-off to achieve a concession from Brussels in another area of the negotiations were allayed, said one MP present.
Holly Lynch for Labour decried the Government’s “chaotic approach” on fisheries and urged the Secretary of State to show “honesty and clarity” about its negotiating position.
Alistair Carmichael for the Liberal Democrats said there was “palpable anger” in Scotland’s fishing communities. He asked: “If the Government can let us down like this on the deal for the transitional period, how do we know they will not do it again when it comes to the final deal?”