George Eustice MP questioned Fisheries Minister, Richard Benyon during his statement following the recent EU Fisheries negotiations.
In the face of proposed large automatic cuts to fishing quotas the Minister successfully negotiated an end to automatic cuts to the number of days fishermen can spend at sea and a large reduction in many of the cuts to quotas. Importantly, Mr Benyon successfully argued that quotas should henceforth be decided on the basis of scientific evidence rather than arbitrary targets. As the Minister said, "This outcome, together with our success in removing proposed restrictions on discard reduction programmes, means that our highly successful and innovative catch quota scheme, which effectively eliminates discards, can continue to grow and develop this year."
Camborne and Redruth MP, George Eustice welcomed the good news that a proposed 55% cut in the quota for south-west haddock has been mitigated to 15%:
"I welcome the Minister’s success in getting the scientific evidence heard, particularly when it comes to haddock in the south-west. Why were the Commission’s original proposals so far wide of the mark, and why is it apparently so dysfunctional on the issue and so deaf to the evidence?"
In answer Mr Benyon said, "The issue of haddock in the south-west is a product of the situation that I mentioned earlier, whereby the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea simply examines one stock on its own. In most of the UK waters we have mixed fisheries, and there is a danger that we can—I have already used this expression in Committee today—make the perfect the enemy of the good. If we are tied to one species, in this case a “choke species”, it can result in more discards and worsen the sustainability of wider stocks. That was why we argued successfully for a reduction in the cut."
To read the whole statement, click here.