Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the Government has plans to replace combined turbot and brill and witch and lemon sole total allowable catches (TACs) with single species TACs in the context of recent scientific advice published by ICES that multi-species TACs prevent effective management.

We have asked ICES to update its advice from 2018 on the effectiveness of management arrangements for these stocks which are managed by joint TACs. ICES have indicated their advice will be available during the autumn and we expect to make it our policy for the annual fisheries negotiation with the EU to manage these stocks based on the updated advice provided by ICES. This request to ICES is an example of the work we are doing through the Specialised Committee for Fisheries to address challenges where we think new or different advice is needed.