The waves of protest against the high fuel prices have been spreading all over the world. After Europe it is now the turn of UK fishermen to raise their voice against the soaring prices of fuel which not only hamper the fishing industry but also forced them off the job. According to the fishermen oil costs mean they lose money whenever they go to sea.
When French fishermen joined the protest outside the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in London, they got international support. And so the protests against the cost of fuel have been staged by fishermen across Europe, as well as UK and Dutch lorry drivers. It has now become Pan-European problem and the fisherman have urged the government to provide an aid package to help them survive.
Fishing industry leaders have discussed the issue with UK Fisheries Minister Jonathan Shaw and Scottish Fisheries Minister Richard Lochhead. The fishermen say that everything they use is based on oil – from the rope with which they make their nets, to the fuel they run their boats on. They told that high fuel cost along with a cut this year in their fishing quotas have made no longer worth going out to sea.
National Federation of Fishermen’s Organisations CEO Barrie Deas told that the fishing industry finds itself in a double bind. He informed that boats are going out to sea and fish for five days in terrible conditions and we’re not getting enough to even pay our crews. One of the organisers of the protest, Richard Brewer, a fisherman from Whitby there could be more demonstrations in the future.
The fishermen accuse the government of not helping the industry through grants or other means. According to a Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs spokesman the ministers believed a long-term approach is the need of the hour.
