EU27 Draw Up Tough New Demands to Lock UK Into Joint Fisheries Deal

I’m sorry the below article is rather long. Explains a lot though…….


Daily Express Friday 23 Nov 18 by Joe Barnes, Brussels Correspondent.

QUOTE

EU countries are preparing to heap misery on Theresa May and make the Prime Minister’s controversial Brexit deal even harder to navigate through Parliament with new fishing demands.

European capitals are working on a series of side declarations as they continue to flesh out terms on how Britain’s future partnership with Brussels will be negotiated - including new plans for the deal on fisheries. The Prime Minister has been forced to deny claims she will hand over access to British territorial fishing waters in exchange for a trade deal with Brussels after the publication of the 26-page “political declaration setting out the framework for the future relationship between the European Union and the United Kingdom.
The aspirational wish list acts as a blueprint for UK and EU negotiators to follow when working on the future trade and security relationship, which will be prepared during the 21-month transition period ending in December 2020.

But now concerned EU countries are publishing a one-off political statement which will add extra assurances over sensitive topics, and will accompany the entire British divorce package.

EU countries will demand a deal for European access to British fishing waters “well before” the end of the transition period ends.

The documents, seen by Express.co.uk, highlights a fisheries deal as a “priority” for negotiators when hammering out the future relationship and should be based on “existing reciprocal access and quota shares”.
“Such an agreement should be negotiated well before the end of the transition period”,
The draft declaration adds.

France is behind the bulked-up text on fisheries text and is designed as a signal to warn Britain against betraying promises during future trade deals.

British fishermen fear any deal struck will essentially become a version of the EU’s deeply controversial Common Fisheries Policy, which grants EU fishing vessels reciprocal access across the bloc’s waters.

The Conservative party’s 13 Scottish MP’s, last week, warned the Prime Minister that any deal that prevents Britain from becoming an “independent coastal state” would be a “betrayal of Scotland”.

The leaked document also includes the EU intentions to keep the UK “dynamically aligned” to its environmental policies and says Brussels “will demonstrate particular vigilance on the necessity to maintain ambitious level playing field conditions and to protect fishing enterprises and their own communities ”
.
The statement says “As recalled in the withdrawal agreement. A fisheries agreement is a matter of priority and should build on inter alia. Existing reciprocal access and quota shares. Such an agreement will be negotiated before the end of the transition period,

“Any decision on the extension of the transition period will take into account the fulfilment of obligations by the United Kingdom under the agreement, including its protocols”.

Michael Gove’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs issued a statement warning the language contained in the document has been explicitly rejected and there is no UK commitment to maintaining access on an existing basis.

But Brussels negotiators will be tied to the terms set out in the declarations and will restrict any potential extension of the transition period under any British attempts to deviate from them.

UNQUOTE

Well, now we know why the declaration referred to the above as the “Fishing Agreement” instead of “Our Territorial Waters” Above is one reason why the backstop will be invoked - demands for our fishing. We cannot leave without their say-so and they won’t let us leave until we give up our fishing rights with another treaty with no end date.

Theresa May won’t be worried. She will already be out and sitting in front of the fire in her slippers. Is it any wonder that the EU have zero respect for Britain and British people when they see gullible Theresa May as weak and anything resembling a leader.

Re: EU27 Draw Up Tough New Demands to Lock UK Into Joint Fisheries Deal

Oh, I'll bet she's shaking in her boots as fisheries make up Less than 5% of GDP And anyway we sell most of it to Europe, without TARIFFS at present.

Are you going to start winging that I've replied to you?

Re: EU27 Draw Up Tough New Demands to Lock UK Into Joint Fisheries Deal

Hi

Firstly, I am getting fed up with your constant attacks on Shropshiregirl.

Secondly, get your facts right.

Re: EU27 Draw Up Tough New Demands to Lock UK Into Joint Fisheries Deal

*** Can you please stop the personal bickering.

Thank you

Re: EU27 Draw Up Tough New Demands to Lock UK Into Joint Fisheries Deal

Firstly, Am I bothered?

Secondly, It is actually 0.12% and not 5% of the UK GVA (sorry about that)

There were 4,000 businesses in the fishing industry in 2016. These businesses employed 24,000 people and contributed £1.4 billion to the UK economy in terms of Gross Value Added (GVA – a measure similar to GDP).

Reference; House of commons library, Number CDP 2017/0256 6th Dec 2017

Re: EU27 Draw Up Tough New Demands to Lock UK Into Joint Fisheries Deal

This post by extra drymartini (post 230, thread brexit and eu) should have prohibited this whole discussion.

that leaves fishing... It's not really "Their retention of our fishing areas". It is the Common Fisheries Policy. UK boats fish European as well as UK waters (as per the French blockade recently vis-a-vis seemingly unfair access by British boats). The UK fishing industry exports more to the EU than it lands in the UK. Were we to pull out of it, countries like France and Spain would almost certainly demand very high tariffs on UK fish, making the whole thing uncompetitive.

That is apart from the point that fishing makes up less than 0.5% of GDP. I don't think it is logical to argue that the entire economy should take the hit of a no deal Brexit just so that this sector (very dubiously) do a little better.*

There is a good treatment on the subject of fishing here:

https://infacts.org/better-deal-uk-f...ll-hard-catch/

Re: EU27 Draw Up Tough New Demands to Lock UK Into Joint Fisheries Deal

Since you are so fond of quoting figures, perhaps you should read the following, eloquently given by John Redwood, MP.….....

QUOTE

Being part of the EU has practically destroyed UK industries.

Steel Industry - when we joined the EU, we had a 45 million tonnes a year steel industry. Today we are battling to save an 11 million tonnes industry.

Aluminium Industry - when we joined the EU we had a 400,000 tonnes a year aluminium industry, Today we have just 43,000 tonnes of capacity left.

Cement Industry - When we joined the EU we had 20 million tonnes of cement capacity. Today we have 12 million tonnes.

Just before we joined the EEC in 1971, we had a 1 million tonnes a year fishing industry. Today we have 600,00 tonnes.

Between 1951 and 1973 food and drink output rose by 5-6% per year. Since EEC/EU it has fallen by more than 1% a year.

Between 1951 and 1973 textiles output expanded at 2.6% a year. Since joining the EEC/EU it has fallen by more than 6% a year.

Whilst it may not be fair to blame all this decline on membership of the EU, as there are other factors, it nonetheless shows categorically that joining the EU and helping create the so-called single market has not helped us grow and has not saved many of our industries from decline.

In some cases, EU policies are the main driver of the disaster. The Common Fishing Policy is clearly the main reason for the dreadful decline of our fishing industry, as many foreign vessels were licenced to take our fish.
Our energy intensive businesses were often damaged by the high energy prices required by the EU common energy policy.

The EU has prevented UK subsidy of industry under its state aid rules but has often provided subsidised loans and grants to businesses to set up elsewhere in the EU.
The UK has seen a spate of factory closures balanced by new and expanded facilities in poorer EU countries. The UK lost van production to Turkey, car capacity to Slovakia, Chocolate to Poland, domestic appliances to the Netherlands and the Czech Republic and metal containers to Poland amongst others in recent years.
IN VARIOUS CASES THERE WAS AN EU GRANT OR LOAN INVOLVED IN THE NEW CAPACITY.

Looking at our huge balance of payments deficit today in goods with the rest of the EU, we can see the long-term impact of the EU’s damage to our manufacturing capacity.

Perhaps Remainers might like to answer the following questions.

Why have we suffered industrial decline and closure with production shifting elsewhere in Europe since joining the EEC?

Why do we trade in surplus with the rest of the world but have such a huge deficit with the EU?

Why have we ended up importing fish, electricity, steel and much else when we used to be self-sufficient?

UNQUOTE

Over to you………….

Re: EU27 Draw Up Tough New Demands to Lock UK Into Joint Fisheries Deal

That is so utterly unimportant, simply a red herring to divert attention away from the main event.

Re: EU27 Draw Up Tough New Demands to Lock UK Into Joint Fisheries Deal

You lost your share in industries to china, india, just as other EU countries did. Due to being part of the EU britain got a chance to switch sources of employment. At present service is your biggest export article. Face it, without your EU membership you would have been bankrupt decades ago.

Re: EU27 Draw Up Tough New Demands to Lock UK Into Joint Fisheries Deal

British Fishing waters are the largest in the EU.

Perhaps we allow the EU to fish in our waters and they allow us to harvest their timber forests . Basically we just drive over whenever we want and take as much timber as we want.