General Election hopefuls urged to support exit from CFP
Jim Tait
The UK fishing industry is challenging General Election candidates in coastal communities such as Orkney and Shetland to pledge their support for restoring control of UK waters.
Scottish Fishermen’s Federation chief executive Bertie Armstrong said they were asking voters in coastal areas to press candidates to sign his organisatin’s pledge and back the important industry.
Mr Armstrong said: “Many candidates have already signed and we are pleased with progress, but it is important particularly in the coastal communities that we secure cross-party political support for our aims.”
Fishermen’s leaders insist that exiting the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) is the only way of end what they term the farcical situation under which the country is forced to give away almost two-thirds of the fish from some of the richest fishing grounds in the world.
Candidates in all 650 parliamentary constituencies have been invited to sign the pledge prior to the election on 8th June.
Mr Armstrong said: “The whole industry, from those who go to sea through the processors to the hauliers, is united behind one simple aim – our coming out of the EU and the CFP.
“Brexit offers us a huge opportunity to re-assert control of our waters and to establish once and for all a sensible, practicable new fisheries management regime.
“We as an industry have repeatedly stated that we will work with the UK and Scottish governments to achieve this, and we hope that candidates will support the prospect of jobs and security for our beleaguered coastal communities by signing this pledge.”
Robert Smith
Goes without saying.
Robert Smith
UKIP
James J Paton
An independent Scottish Government must make major reform of CFP and CAP, as well a major democratic and anti – austerity ( anti- Greece) reforms a condition of any re-entry to the EU. No guarantees can be given, even with a so-called Tory hard Brexit.
A UKIP vote, is of course a wasted vote – but watch them flock back to the hateful Tories, who despite ‘reformed’ remainer May, pretending to play it tough, are still split right down the middle on Europe.
Ali Inkster
How likely do you think that outcome is when we think back to the snp mep begging the EU not to abandon them to the big bad world?
ian tinkler
Whoops, James Paton, nonsense yet again.. It was the labour vote that deserted the Remainers and voted in their hundreds and thousands for Brexit. So “they will flock back to the hateful Tories” will they! They never were Tories to start with but just disgusted with the EU gravy train, even more, appear to be now. Now if we really want to waste a vote, how about the Greens.
Derick Tulloch
Can’t see it will make much difference whether in or out of the CFP.
The stocks will still be shared across national boundaries
Effort control will still be required to prevent the industry destroying the stocks
(noting the conservation measures within the CFP do seem to have worked – with record landings)
Nations with historic rights will still be entitled to access.
James is correct that if we do eventually go back into the EU a negotiation will be required. And it won’t be Theresa May doing the negotiating. No ‘Ted Heath’ this time.
But in any case, it’s much more likely that Scotland will return to the Single Market by joining Norway and Iceland in EFTA/EEA in the first instance, rather than a direct move back to the EU. Purely for reasons of timing
Ali Inkster
Derick it is the aim of damn near every scoti politician to be a full member of the EU not the EFTA or the EEA. They have stated this time and time again in the full knowledge of the harm the CFP has done to coastal communities right around the UK. So why would they change their minds once scotland is independent? And if this is the case why won’t Miriam just say so in answer to my repeated question to her?
Ian Tinkler
Nicola sturgeon, 5/15/2017, “Scotland’s first minister went on to reiterate that if Scotland became independent then she would want the country to be a member of the EU.” Derick Tulloch, you are talking arrant nonsense or do you know more than Nicola with your fantasy speak by stating, “it’s much more likely that Scotland will return to the Single Market by joining Norway and Iceland in EFTA/EEA”.
Michael Garriock
“The stocks will still be shared across national boundaries”
Only if the fishing industry lets them.
“Nations with historic rights will still be entitled to access”.
Only if the fishing industry lets them.
“….it’s much more likely that Scotland will return to the Single Market….”
Scotland can do whatever it feels like and can get away with in regard to itself, but that does not automatically mean Shetland must, or will follow at their heel.
Derick Tulloch
Let’s see what the National Federation of Fishermen’s Association have to say
“1. Joint management of shared stocks. Even after we have left the EU, over 100 of our most important fisheries are on stocks that are shared with other countries. That will require some form of joint management through international agreement. The quota shares that the UK received under the CFP haven’t reflected anything like the proportion of the fish located in our waters but even post-Brexit we will still have a deep interest in controlling overall fishing pressure on these stocks, wherever they are caught and irrespective of who catches them. That means agreeing, through bilateral or trilateral international agreements, total catches and the shares that each country can take. .”
The idea that being out of the EU means total unlimited fishing solely by the national fleet is delusional. And the idea that Theresa May will sacrifice more important economic sectors for fishing is more so!
http://nffo.org.uk/news/are-days-the-answer.html
Derick Tulloch
I refer you to the article on the National Federation of Fishing Organisations website entitled ‘Are Days the Answer?”
“1. Joint management of shared stocks. Even after we have left the EU, over 100 of our most important fisheries are on stocks that are shared with other countries. That will require some form of joint management through international agreement. The quota shares that the UK received under the CFP haven’t reflected anything like the proportion of the fish located in our waters but even post-Brexit we will still have a deep interest in controlling overall fishing pressure on these stocks, wherever they are caught and irrespective of who catches them. That means agreeing, through bilateral or trilateral international agreements, total catches and the shares that each country can take.”
Second: to the BBC article 14 May by Glenn Campbell “Single Market becomes SNP priority over Indyref2”. Actually it’s always been the priority, but anyway it sets out the First Minister’s thinking
“It is her clearest indication yet that if Scotland is already out of the EU, the SNP would initially seek Norway-style membership of the single market through EFTA and the EEA.”
Ali Inkster
Joint management just as Norway, Faeroe and Iceland co-operate on management of joint stocks so will the UK. That does not mean giving up the right to fish those stocks to foreign interests.
Ali Inkster
So obey all the rules pay for the privilege and have no say over the rules. This weeks great idea from the snp.
Michael Garriock
@ Derick Tulloch: That, says absolutely nothing about access to UK territorial waters by non-U.K. boats to fish post brexit, its addressing the post brexit management of migratory stocks which pass through both U.K. and non-U.K. territorial waters.
“Can’t see it will make much difference whether in or out of the CFP”. Suggests no change to the status quo for access and quota, which very much need not be the case. No longer will we necessarily need to be dictated to by Brussels, whatever is or isn’t given away by Westminster is in their control, and their control alone, and the more grief dumped on them by U.K. fishing interests, the better the chance they give away the minimum.
The National Federation of Fishermen’s Association only speaks for its members, and if any fishing interest doesn’t believe the NFFA is representing them adequately, they’re perfectly entitled to make their own representations. There’s plenty of time for things to change yet.
Its clean slate time, all bets are off, EU rules are null and void, historic ‘use & wint’ claims need to come from, and be fought for by those claiming them off us, not by us offering them about.
Ian Tinkler
Derick, perhaps her statement of today, “Nicola sturgeon, 5/15/2017, “Scotland’s first minister went on to reiterate that if Scotland became independent then she would want the country to be a member of the EU.” was just another piece of disingenuous Nicola spin. Rather like so many of her statements.