The head of one fishing organisation has questioned whether Mr Johnson would actually follow up on his pledge to ban the massive vessels – while angrily denouncing the trade agreement unveiled on Christmas Eve as a “cave-in”. The presence of supertrawlers such as the Dutch-flagged Margiris in UK waters has been a source of considerable controversy in recent months.
One analysis by environmental pressure group Greenpeace suggested the ships had spent almost 6,000 hours fishing in designated marine protected areas (MPAs) around the UK coastline in the first six months of 2020.
Speaking to the BBC’s Andrew Marr yesterday, the Prime Minister suggested the issue was on his to-do list, suggesting that after leaving the EU, the UK “will be able to ban these huge hoover trawlers that come in and hoover up everything off the bottom of the sea”.
In reference to a technique whereby boats use a limited electric field above the seabed to catch fish, he added: “One of the things we’ve done is get rid of pulse trawling.
“We’ve done it from day one.”
In response, Greenpeace UK’s head of oceans Will McCallum said: “The Prime Minister has just claimed that now the UK has left the EU, the government will take action against the large-scale destructive fishing that is hoovering up fish at an unsustainable rate, often in some of the UK’s most sensitive marine environments.”
With regard to MPAs, he added: “If he meant what he said, he should take the immediate step of banning bottom trawling and supertrawlers over 100 metres long from the entirety of the UK’s network of marine protected areas.
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“Disingenuous as we could have done so in any event, like France and Belgium have already done.
“Equally difficult to understand is his comment re super trawlers. They cannot come inside the 12 mile limit in any event and never could.”
He warned: “In terms of banning them from our waters altogether, the ‘deal’ done is close to the status quo in terms of foreign access to our waters, ostensibly for 5.5 years but in reality in perpetuity.
“I say this as we caved in on almost every fisheries related promise on the basis of getting a wider deal and the Agreement says that in 5.5 years if we seek to change things in terms of access we can be penalised, up to and including affecting the wider trade deal so if we have caved now, we will certainly cave again at that time.”
He added: “It is also the case that those very powerful companies that own these vessels would take the UK to whatever courts they could if we tried to ban them from accessing their fishing rights so I’m not holding my breath that Johnson and co will man up in this respect.”
The Margiris, the second-biggest supertrawler in the world, which is capable of catching 250 tonnes of fish a day, was spotted off the east coast of Britain in September.
Commenting on Facebook, conservation group the Blue Planet Society said: “Banned from Australia for high levels of marine mammal by-catch and unsustainable fishing practices this floating factory faces protests wherever she goes.
“The people of Scarborough and Bridlington have every right to be absolutely furious.”
The Blue Planet Society also claims the practices of supertrawlers result in the deaths of large numbers of dolphins and other cetaceans.
