Home Brexit Eustice will fight EU fishing trawlers if Brexit talks collapse

Eustice will fight EU fishing trawlers if Brexit talks collapse

by Mark Fitt Political Journalist
4th Oct 20 2:12 pm

Environment Secretary George Eustice has threatened the EU that the British government will fight against fishing trawlers operating in UK waters if Brexit talks collapse.

Fisheries continues to remain a sticking point over a trade deal, and Brexit trade talks have now been extended by another month.

Eustice announced that the government has put in place a “five-fold increase in our enforcement capacity” should there be any stand off with EU fishermen.

The Environment Secretary said that the government will protect and defend our fishing grounds.

He said, “And in fact, the main lesson of the Cod War was it’s much easier to protect your waters against access from overseas vessels than it is to try to defend a notion of an historic access that’s no longer available to us.”

The “Cod Wars” happened during the 70s where British fishermen clashed with Icelandic vessels to maintain fishing right on the North Atlantic Ocean.

During the start of 2021 the Royal Navy will double their patrol vessels.

Eustice told the Mail newspaper, “We’ve really got to have some kind of heads of terms understanding about whether there’s a landing zone by the middle of October.

“And we really can’t let things stretch on much beyond the first week of November because businesses need to know where they stand.”

This comes after the Cabinet Minister Michael Gove furiously attacked the EU over the post-Brexit fishing rights and told them in no uncertain words, that the UK is ready to walk away “come what may” in regaining control.

Gove who was speaking at the Blue Collar Conservatism Conference said there is no way the UK will backdown on Brexit fishing rights for the UK.

Gove warned, “There’s no way that we are going to back down on fishing.

“My dad ran a fishing business, that business went to the wall in the 1980s as a result of the EU and their Common Fisheries Policy. So it’s personal for me.

“But the PM and David Frost have been crystal clear with the EU. These are our waters, these are our fish.

“We’re going to decide who has access to our waters on our terms.

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