I supported the Conservative Government’s Fisheries Act in 2022, which enshrines in law a commitment to sustainable fishing through its objectives and fisheries statements and through the new legal commitment to producing Fisheries Management Plans (FMPs) to restore our fish stocks to sustainable levels. The Act contains a ‘bycatch objective’ seeking to reduce the wasteful practice of discarding fish; an ‘ecosystem objective’ to minimise and, where possible, eliminate negative impacts on marine ecosystems; and a new ‘climate change objective’ which recognises and seeks to reduce the impact of fishing on the health of our oceans and our planet.
The UK is at the forefront of marine protection with 374 Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) protecting 38% of UK waters. We have built a comprehensive network of MPAs and are focusing on making sure they are protected properly. 98 MPAs in English inshore waters already have bylaws in place to protect sensitive features from damaging fishing activities. The first four offshore Byelaws have now also been implemented, which ban bottom towed gear over sensitive habitats, and plans are in place to protect all offshore sites from damaging fishing activity by the end of 2024, using new powers in the Fisheries Act 2020. The Government has also committed to introducing Highly Protected Marine Areas (HPMAs) following the response to the ‘Benyon review’. We are now consulting on candidate pilot HPMAs.
The MMO recently launched a call for evidence on its draft fisheries assessment for the next 13 offshore MPAs. Ministers are considering policies for large pelagic trawlers and flyseining, working with the industry to develop more robust management of the non-quota species which these vessels are targeting, as well as quota stocks.
Since 2019, the UK has been leading the Global Ocean Alliance (GOA) of countries championing ambitious ocean action under the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), including the ‘30by30’ target to protect at least 30% of the global ocean by 2030. The ocean has historically been underrepresented in the CBD, and the GOA plays an important role in raising the profile of the ocean and marine issues.
UK-EU Fisheries
The Trade and Cooperation Agreement between the UK and the EU recognised that the UK has sovereign control of its waters. There was an adjustment period lasting 5 and a half years with reciprocal access to each other’s waters at levels commensurate to each party’s share of fishing opportunities. This allowed fleets on both sides time to adapt to the new arrangements. The adjustment period has now ended, and as of June 2026, the UK has full control of its coastal waters and will have the sole right to determine access. From this point, access will be subject to annual negotiations alongside fishing opportunities.
