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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department has (a) direct and (b) real time access to systems that monitor EU-registered fishing vessels that are fishing in English waters.

Fishing activity in English waters is monitored by the Marine Management Organisation (MMO). MMO receives positional data and electronic logbook (elog) catch data for all foreign fishing vessels of 12 metres or more in length. Data from these vessels is received with the same frequency as for UK vessels. Live positional data is required to be transmitted at least once every two hours and electronic logbook data is required to be submitted at least once per day whilst at sea. Once transmitted, data is automatically forwarded to the UK by the relevant fisheries authority and is received by MMO in close to real-time.