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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to ensure Fisheries Management Plans deliver sustainable fisheries management.

In line with the UK Fisheries Act 2020 Defra is committed to managing our fisheries sustainably. Defra has published the first set of Fisheries Management Plans (FMPs) and are on course to publish the next five by the end of 2025, with a further four to be published by the end of 2026. The plans are evidence based, collaboratively developed, and set out measures to maintain or restore stocks to sustainable levels. Implementation is underway, with critical actions already taken such as an increase in minimum conservation reference size (MCRS) for crawfish to protect the juveniles of these stocks from being landed before they have matured. Plans will be kept under review to ensure they remain effective.