It is worth noting at the outset of this article that the Council of Ministers, EU/Norway negotiations and internal government meetings where UK fisheries policy is formulated, are not covered by CCTV. It is accepted therefore that although this technology has its uses, there are limits to when and where it is appropriate to install it.
This is an important principle in light of the current debate on CCTV aboard fishing vessels.
The UK Fisheries Minister Huw Irranca-Davies has made plain that he is keen to make headway in reducing discards and along with the Danes and German administrations, wants to pilot “catch quotas”, where vessels undertake to land all that they catch of specific species, in return for additional quota. It is suggested that CCTV might be a way through which a vessel can document that it is in fact doing what it has agreed to do. On board inspectors is another way.
