Floundering trade talks. Gunboat diplomacy. Stormy waters ahead. With Brexit and fishing, the puns come easily. But for the fishing industry’s 180,000 European employees, Britain’s E.U. departure is no joke. Its economic significance may be slight—1.6% of GDP at most—but across the continent, fishing sustains whole coastal communities. With London and Brussels at loggerheads over the sector’s future, their survival is in doubt.
Britain’s waters—and the creatures in them—have long been a symbol of eroded sovereignty. For seaside towns up and down the country, Brexit represents a chance to break free of Brussels’ Common Fisheries Policy, a quota system loathed by British fishermen.
In 2016, their side—the Leave campaign—won the argument. Jobs and livelihoods sacrificed in the name of European integration will now be returned, many hope. But as post-Brexit trade talks commence, they fear betrayal by London.
Fishermen work aboard the Good Fellowship fishing trawler, while its nets trawl the sea bed for ... [+]
The government's announcement today, that it'll beef up maritime enforcement, may have calmed some nerves. Three extra Royal Navy vessels, dozens of new fishery protection officers, and aerial surveillance will be deployed to defend British waters against foreign trawlers, ministers said.
It was the latest salvo in an escalating war of words. Last week, France’s Europe minister warned that, if no deal is reached by the end of June, fishing could become a “very nasty battle”. Rumours that French fishermen are planning to ‘blockade’ their homes ports—preventing British ships from landing their catch—have spread like wildfire.
On the surface, it seems like an imbalanced dispute. Fishing grounds on the British side are far more bountiful—that, everyone can agree. This gives the U.K. an advantage, British negotiators believe. They want to see a ‘Norway-model’ introduced: annual access negotiated on the basis of scientific fish stock analysis.
The Europeans disagree. Something closer to the status quo is their desire, with each country’s catch allowance locked in place until both sides agree to renegotiate. It would be an equitable solution, Brussels has argued—but the Brits are unconvinced.
Sea trout is prepared by fishmonger Lenny Walters in Milford Haven in Wales on August 21, 2019. - ... [+]
Their hand is not as strong as it seems, however. European boats might be dependent on British waters, but British fishermen are dependent on European mouths. The seas around their island nation team with herring, mackerel, sole, and langoustine—staples of continental diets. A majority of fish caught by British boats is exported, with three-quarters ending up in the E.U.
It’s for this reason that the threat of blockades—or, more pertinently, of new trade barriers—must be taken seriously. And Europe’s posturing goes hand-in-hand with another stipulation also: that agreement on fisheries is fundamental to the signing of a broader free trade deal.
It’s a daring move by the Europeans. By explicitly linking fishing to agreement on other key areas—the future of E.U. market access for Britain's titanic financial services sector, say—Brussels is forcing upon the U.K. a difficult decision: protect a small yet symbolic industry, or act in the overall economic interest.
But London seems confident of another path. Ministers struck a bullish tone today, claiming that Germany, Italy, and others with negligible interest in fishing would prevent France from thwarting a wider deal.
Anti-Brexit activists fly EU flags as fishing boats take part in a demonstration on the River Tyne ... [+]
They may be right, though the E.U. has demonstrated impressive unity so far. And so post-Brexit fishing sans deal must be contemplated.
In that scenario, Britain would become an independent coastal state controlling what is known as an ‘exclusive economic zone’—a huge swatch of maritime territory stretching up to 200 nautical miles into the North Atlantic. In theory, access would be at London’s discretion; though some say that, under international law, nations can claim historic fishing grounds regardless of location.
As is often the case with Brexit, the way forward is unclear. A compromise lurks somewhere, presumably, but finding it won’t be easy—particularly in so short a space of time. Sacrificing coastal communities is unthinkable, but so too is inviting the economic calamity of No Deal. Tough calls lie ahead.
