Fishing and Coastal Growth Fund Debate
Full Debate: Read Full DebateDepartment: Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Jayne Kirkham
Main Page: Jayne Kirkham (Labour (Co-op) - Truro and Falmouth)Department Debates - View all Jayne Kirkham's debates with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Fishing and Coastal Growth Fund
Jayne Kirkham Excerpts(2 days, 11 hours ago)
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Dame Angela Eagle
The Father of the House knows that flattery will get him everywhere—obviously, I hold him in equally high esteem. Along with my hon. Friend the Member for Great Grimsby and Cleethorpes (Melanie Onn), I am more than happy to work out how we can use this fund to do precisely as he suggests.
Jayne Kirkham (Truro and Falmouth) (Lab/Co-op)
I welcome this fund. The Cornish fishing fleet, which has suffered, has put together a joined-up proposal for our part of the fund, so I would be grateful if the Minister could look at that. The proposal talks about front-loading the investment, multi-year project funding, science and research, and data collection about the number of fish that we catch and the way we catch them, and it particularly focuses on careers, skills and infrastructure. There was an announcement this week about an environmental lead regulator going into the development at Falmouth port, which will make a massive difference and speed up port infrastructure redevelopment. I urge the Minister, and the Government as a whole, to look at doing more of that, to look at local seafood production and to encourage people to eat local.
Dame Angela Eagle
It is rather odd that in this country we have to export more of what we catch because we eat what is caught elsewhere. Expanding the UK population’s view of what they can eat from the catch might make it easier to revive our fishing industry. I will be seeing a group of Cornish Members next week to talk about some of their detailed suggestions about the fund, and I am interested in all creative ideas.