The Granville Bay Agreement, which gave Jersey and French fishermen reciprocal access to each other’s waters, has now been replaced by a new trade agreement under which foreign crews will need a permit to work in local waters.
The area available to French boats will be between three and 12 miles from Jersey’s coast.
In a letter to Marc Lefèvre, president of the Departmental Council of La Manche, Environment Minister John Young said that fishermen with a proven history of operating in Jersey’s seas would be issued the relevant licence.
‘We can assure you that Jersey officials have been working closely with the Affairs Maritimes to discuss the implications of the new arrangement since we were made aware of the final terms of the UK-EU agreement, and that these discussions have included the process for the issue of licenses for vessels to fish in each other’s waters, he wrote.
‘As part of delivering a smooth transition, Jersey will move quickly to establish the new licensing regime with licences issued to all those vessels who have already demonstrated that they qualify under the new criteria.
‘Other vessels, for which Jersey does not currently have evidence of fishing activity, will also have an opportunity to apply providing evidence, and those applications will be considered by Jersey authorities as appropriate.’
Deputy Young said that the department had already started issuing interim licences to the vessels which fulfil the criteria.
Crews which currently cannot demonstrate a proven history of fishing around Jersey will receive licences only when they can provide evidence of their previous operations.
However, vessels which currently have a permit under the Granville Bay Agreement will be able to continue to operate in Jersey waters while they work to gather evidence of their previous fishing history. This must be submitted by 30 April.
Separately, the final legal orders to prepare Jersey for the UK’s exit from the EU were signed by the External Relations Minister on New Year’s Eve.
Senator Ian Gorst made ‘commencement orders’ that brought into force the final laws and regulations needed to ensure Jersey was ready to enter into the new Trade and Co-operation Agreement between the two blocs.
The orders repealed the European Union (Jersey) Law 1973 and European Economic Area (Jersey) Law 1995, which shaped Jersey’s economic relationship with the EU, and gave effect to the new trade deal.
Senator Gorst said: ‘I have made two orders that complete the final necessary legislative changes in preparation for the end of the [Brexit] transition period.
‘This brings to a close the legal relationship that Jersey has enjoyed with the
EEC, and then the European Union, since 1973.
‘We now have a new relationship, through the UK-EU Trade and Co-operation Agreement, which we are ready to implement and operate successfully.
‘In addition, Jersey will continue to engage with the EU institutions and member states on a range of important issues in line with our good-neighbour policy.’
He added: ‘I would like to thank my ministerial colleagues and our officials from across the government for their determination and professionalism throughout the last four years. We have ensured we are in the best position possible as the transition period comes to an end and these new arrangements take their place from 1 January.’
lNews Focus: Pages 8 and 9.
