Constable Mike Jackson said that options needed to be looked at as Jersey’s fishermen faced growing uncertainty following the end of the Brexit transition period, at which stage the Granville Bay Agreement, which set out Jersey and French fishing rights in the Island’s waters, became obsolete.
The Environment, Housing and Infrastructure panel, headed by Mr Jackson, has now announced a review of how the new trade agreement between the UK and the EU will impact on Jersey’s fisheries.
The States backed participation in the UK-EU Trade and Economic Co-operation Agreement on 27 December, but Jersey has the option, subject to a States vote, to withdraw from it within a 90-day cooling off period, if it is found not to be in the Island’s interests.
External Relations Minister Ian Gorst announced during the debate that the agreement would supersede the Granville Bay Agreement from 1 January and that French vessels would now need to request licences to fish in Jersey’s waters from the Island’s authorities. This has caused disquiet among some French fishermen.
Meanwhile, representatives of the local fleet have complained that Jersey’s exclusive fishing zone was not extended from three to six miles and that there is now extra bureaucracy involved in exporting their catch to France.
The panel’s review is due to consider ‘changes to processes and procedures in the fishing industry’ and whether ‘sufficient infrastructure is in place to source new markets for Jersey-caught fish’.
Mr Jackson said that a solution needed to be found to support the local industry at this time.
‘We’ve drawn up a terms of reference and a scoping document to hopefully cover all the areas that might prove to be of benefit to our fishermen. That’s the whole concept of what we’re doing,’ he said. ‘We’re looking at the present arrangements, we’re looking at the consequential aspects and what is happening here on a day-to-day basis.
‘It’s becoming impossible to export fish into France due to the enormous amount of paperwork required and the convoluted processes that seem to have arisen. So that is certainly something we have to look further into.
‘The question has to arise – are there any other markets that could easily be exported into? Of course, we’ve got distance involved – the UK is a lot further away than France and there is a cost to that. So, these are areas that we need to think hard about.’
Mr Jackson said that he was ‘surprised’ at the announcement that the Granville Bay Agreement was to be superseded but added that he felt it had given undue favour to the French fleet. He added that he thought the drawing up of a new revised agreement could be the solution.
‘I suspect it may be a question of bilateral arrangements with Normandy and Brittany but that has yet to be seen,’ he said.
Views can be submitted to the panel online using the Get Involved form on the States Assembly website. Members can also be contacted by emailing scrutiny@gov.je or messaging States Assembly social media pages.
