FAQ: Behind the Brexit fisheries transition deal

The road from status quo to taking back control will be longer than Brexiteers hoped for.

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British Environment Secretary Michael Gove has long demanded the U.K. renegotiate fishing quotas and access for EU vessels to British waters after Brexit, a proposal popular with British fishermen. Just last week, Gove and Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson said it was “vital” the country regain control over the management of its fisheries after March 29, 2019.

Then came the transition agreement, signed by the EU and the U.K. on Monday, which says the U.K. will stay in the much-maligned EU Common Fisheries Policy and the quotas will remain in place during the Brexit transition period, which will last until December 31, 2020.

Brexiteers are furious. Instead of “taking back control,” the agreement leaves Britain bound by the EU’s fishing rules but with no say in the quota it will receive. Gove told MPs that while he shared the “disappointment” of fishing communities at what he described as the EU’s refusal to budge on the issue, they should keep their “eyes on the prize” of regaining control.

Here’s POLITICO’s guide to how the Brexit transition deal will impact fisheries.

What had the U.K. government promised?

Gove has positioned himself as anti-Common Fisheries Policy (CFP), the EU’s legislation on how to manage fisheries in the bloc. Despite the draft agreement on the transition period upholding the status quo, Gove on March 11 published a joint statement with Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson urging Britain to leave the CFP. “We believe it is vital that we regain control over our own fisheries management. We want to use the opportunity of Brexit to secure a sustainable marine environment for the next generation,” reads the statement.

How are fishing quotas decided?

Each year, the European Commission proposes total allowable catch limits for stocks within EU waters. These numbers are set using scientific advice from the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea. The total number of catches is then divided between EU countries using a fixed allocation percentage called the relative stability key, to determine how much fish each country gets. EU countries can exchange quotas with each other.

The U.K. and Ireland have access to a special mechanism called the Hague Preference. When the duo joined the EU, they negotiated the right to increase their share of a quota to safeguard coastal communities dependent on certain fish stocks such as cod and haddock. This has often benefitted the U.K. because it has allowed it to up its quota shares.

What will change during a transition?

The U.K. will technically not have a place at the negotiating table during quota negotiations in 2019. However, it will still be bound by the Common Fisheries Policy and be consulted on quotas set in its waters. It is unlikely that this arrangement will change much on a practical level. Gove told the U.K. parliament that the EU has an incentive to “act in good faith” because if not, the U.K. may “be less generous” with the EU fleet once its leaves the EU.

What does “consultation” mean in practice?

Under the agreement, the U.K. will have the right to be consulted on quotas set in its waters. In practice, this means the right to comment on the Commission’s Annual Communication and other proposals on fishing opportunities as well as scientific advice from bodies like the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea. The European Commission has yet to decide what form this consultation will take.

What happens after the transition?

Once the U.K. officially leaves the EU on January 1, 2021, it becomes an independent coastal state with the ability to set its own fisheries management law. When the U.K. becomes a coastal state, it has the right to control who fishes in a 200-nautical-mile zone around the island, known as the exclusive economic zone.

The U.K. likely won’t become a fishing Wild West. Under the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea, countries that share maritime borders must jointly manage shared fish stocks. The EU and the U.K. share more than 100 fish stocks.

The British government is also working on its own domestic fisheries management bill. There are still discussions about the extent to which the new legislation will resemble the Common Fisheries Policy it will replace. An EU fisheries analyst confirmed to POLITICO that a decision is expected in the coming weeks.

Does that mean foreign trawlers will be banned from U.K. waters?

Not necessarily, but it will be up to the Brits to decide who fishes in U.K. waters. Anyone hoping to cast their nets around Blighty will need a license from the British government.

This system could be organized in the same way as Norway, which issues permits every year for the EU fleet to catch species ranging from cod to herring in their waters. Brussels holds talks with Oslo each year to facilitate these fishing rights as part of a broader quota swap. Another version could be a style similar to Greenland, which has institutionalized the EU’s share of quotas in its waters in exchange for other benefits.

However, since the U.K. exports much of its fish to the EU, it may be willing to trade market access for fishing rights to maintain tariff-free status for U.K. fish and seafood products. EU chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier has stated that market access for U.K. fish and seafood products is contingent on allowing EU vessels to fish in U.K. waters.