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Fisheries Act 2020

Contents

Policy background

Exiting the EU

  1. On 1 January 1973 the UK joined the European Economic Community, which has since evolved to become today’s European Union. As part of its membership, the UK joined the CFP, which has underpinned UK fisheries management policy for the 45 years since.
  2. On 29 March 2017, the then Prime Minister gave notification of withdrawal of the UK from the EU under Article 50(2) of the Treaty on European Union (TEU).
  3. The European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Act 2020 received Royal Assent on 23 January 2020. This means that the UK will no longer be bound by the CFP’s regulations from the end of the Transition Period on 31 December 2020. The Fisheries Act establishes a domestic system of fisheries management.

The Common Fisheries Policy (CFP)

  1. The CFP has been reformed several times during the course of the UK's membership of the EU, but the principal matters which the CFP has covered are as follows:
  • Shared access for EU fishing boats to EU Member States' waters;
  • Total Allowable Catch (TAC) and fishing opportunities for key fish stocks for each Member State are agreed annually in December between EU Member States;
  • The representation of EU Member States by the European Commission in negotiations with third countries and in international fisheries agreements; and,
  • Directly applicable fisheries management legislation, including on detailed technical measures and control and enforcement.

Access

  1. In relation to access arrangements, under the CFP, EU Member States share access to each other’s Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) and territorial (inshore) waters in the following way:
  • 0 to 6 nautical miles: national boats only, and subject to a specific arrangement between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland - the voisinage arrangement. There are mutual access arrangements between France and Jersey under the Granville Bay Agreement;
  • 6 to 12 nautical miles: national boats, and foreign boats operating under historic access arrangements. Boats from Belgium, France, Germany, Netherlands and the Republic of Ireland have had access to the UK 6 to12 mile zone under the London Fisheries Convention (LFC), which is also reflected in the CFP Regulation. UK boats also have some access to the zones of those countries;
  • 12 to 200 nautical miles: EU waters, shared access between all Member States.

The management of fishing opportunities

  1. In the management of fishing opportunities, the explicit objectives of the CFP are to ensure that fishing is environmentally, economically and socially sustainable. Under the CFP, most fish stocks in the North East Atlantic (which includes the waters around the UK) are managed using TACs, which are shared between Member States as quotas. TACs cover more than 50 species split into over 200 stocks. Currently the UK has interests in 123 of those stocks. TACs are agreed following scientific advice provided by the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES). EU Member States and other countries that fish in the North East Atlantic, such as Norway, Iceland, the Faroe Islands and Russia, contribute to this advice by providing stock assessments produced by their national scientific bodies and by submitting catch data.
  2. Although ICES make recommendations on the level of TAC which reflect different management scenarios consistent with sustainable management of the stock, the TAC level set is negotiated and agreed between the parties fishing the stock.

Coastal State negotiations

  1. International law, including the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and the UN Fish Stocks Agreement (UNFSA), provides that coastal States control fisheries in their territorial waters and EEZ, and must co-operate with one another to manage shared fish stocks.
  2. Under the CFP, TACs and quota shares are agreed between the EU Commission (acting on behalf of Member States) and other parties. Agreements are reached, for example, bilaterally with Norway and the Faroe Islands and within Regional Fisheries Management Organisations (RFMOs). RFMOs are international organisations formed by countries with fishing interests in an area (and driven by obligations under UNCLOS and UNFSA). Some of them manage all the fish stocks found in a specific area, while others focus on particular highly-migratory species, notably tuna.
  3. The EU Commission leads on all external fisheries negotiations on behalf of Member States. It holds co-ordination meetings with interested Member States prior to and during negotiations.

December Fisheries Council

  1. The TAC for each stock for the following year is agreed annually at the December Fisheries Council. This involves complex negotiations between Member States and the EU Commission. The EU Commission and the Presidency secure agreement by a Qualified Majority in the Council to reach a deal. The TACs and Quota Regulation is a directly applicable Council Regulation.

National quotas

  1. Once EU TACs have been set, they are divided between Member States into national quotas. Quota is allocated to Member States in accordance with a method known as ‘relative stability’ – this grants EU countries a fixed percentage of quota for each fish stock covered by TACs. Relative stability shares (which vary by stock) were agreed in 1983 and based on Member States’ historical fishing patterns dating back to the 1970s.

Management regime

  1. The CFP has undergone a number of reforms since it was introduced. The most recent reform took place in 2013 and introduced a range of measures designed to conserve fisheries resources. These include a commitment to fish at maximum sustainable yield, a ban on discarding fish, and increased regionalisation of fisheries governance. Examples of the management reforms introduced in 2013 are:
  • The landing obligation: one of the problems with the quota system is the incentive it provides for fishers to throw over-quota fish back into the sea. To end this wasteful practice, the latest CFP reform introduced a phased landing obligation in 2015, which now requires all catches to be landed.
  • Regionalisation: enables only those Member States that share fisheries at a sea basin level to agree and enact regional decisions in EU or national law.

European Maritime and Fisheries Fund

  1. Funding for the fisheries industry in the EU is derived from the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF). The UK was allocated €243m from the EMFF over 2014 to 2020, divided between England, Wales Scotland, and Northern Ireland.

Fisheries management in the UK

Quota distribution

  1. Following agreement at December Council on the level of TACs, Defra allocates shares of the UK’s quotas to each of the UK’s four Fisheries Administrations. Allocations have been based on Fixed Quota Allocation (FQA) units and arrangements for allocating and transferring quota are set out in the Concordat between the Fisheries Administrations (Concordat on management arrangements for fishing quotas and licensing in the UK and in the Quota Management Rules (Rules for the management of the UK's fisheries quotas in areas I, II, IV, VI and VI (and associated areas) and in Faroese waters (Vb)). Each unit entitles the FQA holder to a specific percentage share of UK quota for a given stock. FQAs were allocated to vessel owners in 1999 based on historical fishing track records.
  2. The fishing industry is divided into two categories for the purposes of distributing fishing opportunities:
  • the "sector", which is comprised of boats over 10 metres in length that are members of Producer Organisations (POs) (see below). POs manage the quota received on behalf of their members. Most over 10 metre boats are members of POs in the UK; and
  • the "non-sector", which is comprised of over 10 metre and under-10 metre boats that are not members of POs. Their quota is managed by each fisheries administration using a shared pool system. For England, these pools are managed by the MMO, who issue monthly allocations of quota and, based on the level of catches recorded, the MMO will make decisions on whether the levels of quota allocated each month need to be changed.
  1. Some quota is allocated outside of the FQA system to support certain policy objectives. For example, in England the under-10 metre fleet’s allocation is adjusted to guarantee a minimum share in certain stocks.

Producer Organisations

  1. POs were established under the EU Regulation on the common organisation of the markets in fishery and aquaculture products (No. 1379/2013 - the ‘CMO Regulation’). POs are made up of fishery or aquaculture producers and their main objectives are promoting sustainable fishing, reducing unwanted catches, contributing to the traceability of fishery products, and the elimination of illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing. They also play a role in marketing the products of their members and building a relationship with the supply chain (fish markets, processors, other purchasers, retailers and consumers) in order to promote market stability.
  2. In addition to their responsibilities under the CMO Regulation, POs in the UK are responsible for managing quota on behalf of their members. PO staff also provide an administrative function to ensure accurate catch records for their members are maintained.

Fisheries Management in England

  1. The enforcement and management of fisheries is generally carried out by the MMO and the Inshore Fisheries Conservation Authorities (IFCAs).
  2. The MMO's functions are set out in the Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009 (MCAA) and in general terms are to license, regulate and plan marine activities in the seas around England.
  3. The IFCAs’ functions are also set out in the MCAA. They are committees or joint committees formed from relevant local authorities within 10 areas across England. Their duties relate to the management of fisheries resources and the conservation of the marine environment within the inshore sea (0 to 6 nautical miles). Their powers include byelaw making powers.

Devolution

  1. Fisheries is generally a devolved matter: the Devolved Administrations regulate fisheries in their waters and in the case of Scotland and Northern Ireland, can regulate their boats wherever they fish. The current UK-wide approach to fisheries is achieved because all the Fisheries Administrations are required to comply with EU law – including the CFP.
  2. Also, as UK boats fish throughout UK waters, the Fisheries Administrations work together to ensure a common or consistent approach to fisheries management where necessary or appropriate. This is currently provided for through the Concordat.

Sustainable fisheries for future generations

  1. On 4 July 2018, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) published a White Paper for consultation (‘Sustainable fisheries for future generation’). This set out the Government’s vision for future fisheries management after leaving the EU and the CFP. The White Paper sets out the Government’s aim to build a vibrant and sustainable UK fishing industry by taking responsibility for managing fisheries resources within UK waters, while continuing to protect and improve the marine environment, in line with the 25 Year Environment Plan which was published in January 2018. The purpose of the consultation was to seek views on the Government’s proposals for all aspects of its emerging approach which were set out in the White Paper.
  2. The consultation closed on 12 September 2018. In total, 34,667 responses to the consultation were received from a wide range of stakeholders including fishermen, POs, public bodies, local councils, non-governmental organisations, members of Parliament, IFCAs, academia, other industries and local groups.

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