Fishing quota boost distributed across the Union
The government has announced the allocation of additional fishing quota between Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and England.
Additional quota for 2021 have now been allocated between fisheries administrations.
The UK Government has today set out how additional fishing quota, secured through the negotiations in December last year, will be split between Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and England in 2021.
Since becoming an independent coastal state, the UK has gained an uplift in fishing quota over and above what it had before leaving the EU. This uplift, estimated to be worth around £146m, will be delivered over the next five years.
This is equivalent to 25% of the value of the EU’s average annual historic catch in UK waters. The majority of this quota - 15% of the EU’s historic catch in UK waters - will be transferred this year and will now be distributed across the four nations of the UK.
This distribution of quota follows a public consultation held in October and takes into account the needs of our fishing fleet all around the UK. It will be allocated between fisheries administrations based on the previous track record of fishing activity in each nation and the principle of zonal attachment which reflects the areas where fish are present in UK waters.
This approach ensures the additional quota received will deliver benefits to fishermen and coastal communities across the Union. Full details can be found here.
Fisheries Minister Victoria Prentis said:
I am pleased to announce how we will allocate the additional fishing quota we have obtained from leaving the EU across the UK fishing industry.
As an independent coastal state we can now make new decisions on how we manage our fisheries. These additional fishing opportunities will deliver increased economic benefits to fishermen and coastal communities across the Union.
Fisheries is a devolved matter so each administration will now decide how to allocate their share of this additional quota to their industry.
Information on how additional quota will be allocated to the English fleet will be published shortly.
Negotiations with the EU and Norway are currently underway to determine catch limits for shared stocks. Once negotiations have concluded there will be further communications setting out fishing opportunities for 2021.
Today’s announcement delivers on the Government’s commitment set out in the 2018 Fisheries White Paper and our Fisheries Act 2020 to promote a more competitive, profitable and sustainable fishing industry across the whole of the UK, and to set a gold standard for sustainable fishing.