UK and Norway have signed continuity agreement which enables UK vessels to continue fishing in Norwegian waters after 31st October, with the agreement ensuring that current arrangements remain in place to the end of this year.
At present UK fishing vessels operate in Norwegian waters under an agreement between the EU and Norway. As the UK leaves the EU, this agreement will cease. This new agreement maintains existing arrangements between the two countries will remain in place until the end of 2019.
According to a statement, both the UK and Norway are committed to continuing to work together, providing certainty for their respective industries and managing shared fish stocks sustainably.
These arrangements will honour the existing access arrangements agreed, in as far as they concern the UK and Norway, and ensure that appropriate licensing, control and enforcement provisions are in place, following the model agreed by the EU and Norway.
The agreement also honours management decisions that were made with Norway for 2019 for North Sea stocks that are jointly managed, while also honouring existing quota exchanges for 2019, and existing access arrangements between the two countries.
In further preparation for exit day, a new licensing authority, the Single Issuing Authority (SIA), has also been set up jointly by the England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland administrations. This will ensure the availability of the correct licences to fish legally after leaving the EU.
The SIA is calling on vessel owners in the over 12-metre fleet to ensure their vessel has an IMO number, which will be needed to fish outside UK waters when we leave the EU. Owners of vessels are urged to register now for an IMO number from the International Maritime Organisation to enable the timely processing of the subsequent licensing documentation.
