In London on Wednesday 5 September, representatives of British and French fisheries drew up a draft agreement on scallop fishing arrangements (see EUROPE 12086).
The French and British fishermen have found common ground on scallop fishing in the Baie de Seine. Further discussions are scheduled to take place in Paris on Friday 7 September, in order to finalise a deal.
The French and British governments explain in a joint press release that the previous agreement - whereby British boats of 15 metres to respect the scallop fishing closure period imposed on French fishermen – will be renewed.
Inclusion of boats under 15 metres. “In addition, an agreement on the principles of a deal has been reached” so that British boats under 15 metres in length may also be included in the agreement. In exchange, compensation – the details of which will be defined in Paris on Friday - will be paid to British fishermen.
Normandy fishermen may catch scallops from 1 October to 15 May and they ask that the British, for whom there is no time limit on fishing, keep to the same fishing dates off the French coast for all boats, whatever their size. Currently, only boats of 15 metres and over must comply with this calendar. France wants restrictions to be imposed on boats under 15 metres also. This was the crux of the matter causing contention and preventing the two countries from keeping to the agreement in force in 2018.
France’s Agriculture Minister Stéphane Travert said that “it is necessary to reach such a deal in order to preserve sustainable management of scallop resources”.
The dispute between French and British fisheries concerns a fishing area in the Baie de Seine. Last week, there were clashes at sea when some 30 French boats tried to prevent five British boats from fishing the valuable scallop in France’s territorial waters. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)