Scottish fishermen’s leaders have welcomed commitments by UK government ministers on leaving the Common Fisheries Policy in March 2019.
‘Becoming a coastal state on day one in order that we can negotiate the best deal could make a real economic difference to our coastal communities,’ said SFF chief executive Bertie Armstrong.
‘So we welcome these acknowledgements from within the UK government of the logic and practical sense of the position that we have been arguing and fighting for.’
Environment secretary Michael Gove and home secretary Amber Rudd both made explicit media comments this weekend in favour of an immediate UK departure from the CFP in March next year, providing a great opportunity for a better deal for fishing communities.
In an interview with The Sunday Times, Michael Gove said the UK should leave the CFP in March 2019, and not at the end of any transition period, and approved of the Scottish Fishermen’s Federation proposal of a nine-month bridge from March to December 2019 to fit in with international fisheries negotiations.
‘There is the realisation of the sea of opportunity that exists from exiting the CFP – but it can only work if we get out on day one. There is no other way,’ Bertie Armstrong said.
