Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union :
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Draft Political Declaration setting out the framework for the future relationship between the United Kingdom and the European Union, published on 22 November, what are the implications of the agreement of the "rational management and regulation of fisheries in a non-discriminatory manner" in relation to "Fishing Opportunities" when applied to fishing within UK territorial waters.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The full Political Declaration reaffirms that, when we leave the EU, the UK will become an independent coastal state in control of its waters. As outlined in the Withdrawal Agreement, the UK and the EU shall use their best endeavours to conclude and ratify a new fisheries agreement before 1 July 2020. Specific arrangements will be a matter for discussions, as part of the next stage of negotiations, including access by non-UK vessels to fish in UK waters. Any non-UK registered vessels granted access to UK waters will need to meet the same requirements as our fleet across all UK fishing zones, including adherence to sustainable practices.
The Fisheries Bill creates the powers necessary to build a sustainable and profitable fishing industry, one which is in the best interests of the whole UK and future generations. We have also recently announced an amendment to the Fisheries Bill that would place a legal obligation on the government, when negotiating a fisheries agreement with the EU, to pursue a fairer share of fishing opportunities than the UK currently receives under the Common Fisheries Policy