Mundell ‘satisfied’ deal protects fishers

Scottish secretary backs draft agreement

Scottish Secretary David Mundell has thrown his weight behind the Brexit divorce deal, insisting it will deliver for the fishing industry.

He also said he was happy to move on to the next stage on the “basis that arrangements for Northern Ireland will not undermine the economic or constitutional integrity of the UK”.

His remarks came at the end of a marathon Cabinet meeting, during which he had ambushed the prime minister with a letter signed by all 13 Scottish Tory MPs.

But while Mr Mundell said he was “content to move to the next stage”, fishing industry leaders were still voicing concerns.

Scottish Fishermen’s Federation chief executive Bertie Armstrong stressed: “Any linkage between access and trade

“Quota shares cannot be included in the future partnership”

contravenes all international norms and practice and is simply unacceptable in principle”.

He added: “Therefore we have asked the prime minister for assurances that the establishment of a new fisheries agreement as laid out in the Brexit arrangements does not imply that EU vessels will be guaranteed continued access to our waters in return for favourable trade terms.”

The letter came on the back of senior EU negotiator Sabine Weyand reportedly telling European ambassadors that Britain would “have to swallow a link between access to products and fisheries in future agreements”.

The leaked note, which she cast doubt on the authenticity of, also said the deal would mean the UK aligning its rules with Europe while the EU retains “all the controls”.

Mr Armstrong declared anything less than the fulfilment of Mrs May’s previous commitments to the industry would make a no-deal scenario a “more attractive option”.

In their letter, the 13 MPs – including the five representing north and northeast constituencies – pointed to Mrs May’s previous “welcome statements” that Brexit would mean leaving the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) and negotiating as an independent coastal state from December 2020.

Anything less would be a “betrayal of Scotland”, they wrote, stressing access and quota shares “cannot be included in the future economic partnership, allowing the UK to become an independent coastal state both in principal and in practice”.

And they repeated: “We also cannot remain in the CFP after December 2020.”

If the UK is not negotiating as an independent coastal state by this point, then it will be locked into CFP terms for another cycle, namely throughout 2021.

After Cabinet, Mr Mundell said: “I was content to move to the next stage of the process on the basis that Brexit will deliver for our fishing industry – as I and colleagues set out in our letter – and on the basis that arrangements for Northern Ireland will not undermine the economic or constitutional integrity of the UK.” Mr Armstrong said: “The industry’s priority has always been taking back control of decision-making over who catches what, where and when in our waters, so that we can end once and for all the grossly unfair situation where 60% of our stocks are taken, gratis, by boats from other EU nations.

“That would mean the UK becoming a fully independent coastal state with its own seat at all the relevant international fisheries negotiations from December 2020 on and regaining its proud status as one of the world’s major fishing nations. Negotiations over trade terms for seafood products would follow on from this.”

Yesterday, Mrs May said at prime minister’s questions: “We will become an independent coastal state and it will be the UK negotiating on the UK’s behalf in terms of access to UK waters.”