France on Wednesday condemned the United Kingdom (UK) and Jersey for refusing to grant fishing licenses to French vessels, calling the decision “totally unacceptable and inadmissible.”
French government spokesperson Gabriel Attal told reporters that the “decisions contravene the agreement signed in the context of Brexit.” “The French state will stand by its fishermen in this discussion,” he added.
In a statement on Tuesday, the British government said it would grant fishing licences to 12 out of 47 small EU boats in its territorial waters. “EU vessels needed to provide evidence of a track record of fishing activity in those waters,” the government said, adding that it would consider “further evidence to support remaining licence requests.”
Reacting to the development, French Minister for the Sea Annick Girardin said, “It is a new refusal by the British to apply the conditions of the Brexit agreement despite all the work undertaken together.” “I have only one watchword left: to obtain definitive licences for our fishermen as provided for in the agreement. French fishing must not be taken hostage by the British for political purposes,” she added. The Minister also met representatives from concerned professional organisations on Wednesday to discuss the matter.
Likewise, France’s Europe Minister, Clement Beaune, said, “We understand and share the exasperation of our fishermen. We cannot cooperate in confidence with the UK until the agreement is respected. We will not hesitate to take collective retaliatory action.”
According to the French Ministry of the Sea, the UK previously issued 100 out of 175 licenses.
Meanwhile, the European Commission noted the UK government’s latest round of licences but “regrets that it has not been possible to bring this issue now to an end.” “We will ask the UK for full disclosure of their methodology and will continue to further engage in the interest of our fishermen and women so that further licenses will be provided,” the Commission added.
France and Britain have been engaged in a spat over fishing rights since Brexit. France has accused the UK of not honouring the Brexit agreement regarding fishing licenses. The post-Brexit deal negotiated with the Union granted EU fishermen the right to fish in certain British waters if they obtained a permit. The vessels can get the license if the fishermen prove they were fishing in particular waters before Brexit.
Following suit, Jersey refused to grant fishing licenses to more than 70 French boats.
Since Brexit came into effect, French boats were granted fishing rights in Jersey waters under a temporary agreement. However, Jersey’s local government decided to cancel the deal and said, “Those who have been refused a licence must stop fishing in Jersey waters in 30 days.”
Senator Ian Gorst, Jersey’s Minister for External Relations, said, “Jersey has maintained a pragmatic, reasonable and evidence-based approach throughout, extending the transitional period on several occasions until now, despite not being required by the TCA (Trade and Cooperation Agreement) to do so.” “We’re now in a position to ensure those boats which have fished these waters can continue doing so, and therefore it is time, next month, for our transitional arrangements to come to a close,” he added.
While Jersey has granted licenses to 64 French vessels, 75 boats have been denied. In addition, 31 provisional licenses, valid until January 2022, have been given to vessels that need to provide more information to secure a permanent license. “We will accept and consider further data and evidence from unlicenced boats as and when it is submitted,” authorities said. Apart from this, 47 permanent licenses have already been granted to French fishermen.