Brexit: Naval intervention over fishing backed by Lord West

France has already threatened to reject Brexit negotiations over fishing rights this week. Fishing remains one of the main sticking points as the trade talks between the EU and UK are continuing to go down to the wire.

Olivier Le Prêtre, head of the Hauts-de-France fishing council, worries that the French would be swamped by European rivals if the UK rejects them.

He told the Sunday Telegraph: “If it was only French fishermen in French waters, then no-deal might be ok but we have the Belgians, the Dutch to contend with.

“If they all end up in French waters, there is a risk of overfishing and in a few months we’ll annihilate stocks.”

He went on to claim that the Dutch were the ‘villains’ of the story.

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He added: “This is a nation that is exterminating fish. They have bought up the European fleet, they fish to excess.

“We all know full well that if we exterminate the fish they won’t come back ever again.”

The Ministry of Defence confirmed this week that four 80-metre armed vessels are on standby to guard British waters from European fishing boats if there is no new post-Brexit deal on fishing rights.

In response to the news, an Elysee official told Reuters on Saturday “Keep calm and carry on” referencing the British wartime slogan.

Negotiations over the trade deal are expected to end on Sunday as both sides have acknowledged that a no-deal scenario is now likely.

Dimitri Rogoff, president of the regional Normandy fishing committee, also claimed that the Dutch posed a problem to France.

He told the Telegraph: “They practice what I would call a scorched-earth policy: when there is nothing left, they look elsewhere.

“We saw it with electric fishing. That cannot sit with our fishermen who fish locally and don’t look elsewhere when nothing’s left.”

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He added: “At the moment they fish all over the Channel, in French and English waters.”

But he warned that as the Brexit transition period comes to an end with no certainty of a fishing agreement there could be “a build-up of these giants on the French side because the English won’t let them in anymore”.

It comes after fishermen in Fécamp, France, protested with NGOs over eight massive mainly Dutch-owned vessels which are fishing 26 miles off the coast.

Mr Rogoff told the Telegraph: “There is strong lobbying by the Dutch towards France, which doesn’t want to fall out with their ‘allies’ over Brexit.”

Representatives from the French fishing industry reportedly do not want to enter into a situation similar to the UK where a large portion of their quota is in the hands of other countries.

According to BBC research, about £160million worth of England’s fishing quota is in the hands of vessels owned by companies based in the Netherlands, Spain and Iceland.

Mr Rogoff added: “The Dutch fleet relocated to Britain some time ago as we have seen lots of big Dutch-owned seine boats with UK flags in recent years.

“Now they have started operating boats with German flags, the likes of which have not been seen in the Channel since the Second World War.”

Mr Le Prêtre added: “The British fishermen talk about reclaiming their waters and yet their government has allowed its fishing industry to be sold off. I don’t get it.”

Trade talks were reportedly continuing through the night on Saturday evening as the UK and EU battle to agree on a post-Brexit deal.

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