Brexit fishing row as agreed adjustment period with EU ‘trap’: Pathetic!’ – Express

Brexit: Fishing industry was 'sacrificed' by government says Deas

In the past six months the relationship between the UK and France has been fraught with tension as both sides try to agree on post-Brexit fishing rights.Since the beginning of last year, EU member state boats need a licence to fish in UK and Jersey waters, while UK boats need a licence to fish in EU waters.Licences are granted to boats that can prove they have fished in a particular area between February 2017 and January 2020, but some vessels have found this more difficult to prove than others.

In October lastyear, dozens of French boats were denied a licence and since then tensions have escalated, with France having made various threats as to what would happen if more licences were not issued.

French fishermen even took action into their own hands in November, by blocking British boats access to French ports and blocking trucks at the Eurotunnel freight terminal.

In the Brexit deal both sides agreed to an adjustment period, where 25 percent of EU fishing rights in UK waters would be transferred to the UK over five years.

The amount of fish the EUisallowed to catch in UK waters will be reduced by 15 percent in the first year, and by 2.5 percent each subsequent year, with an end date of June 30 2026.

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Dr Bull, who is Deputy Leader of Reform UK, previously known as the Brexit Party, insisted that this six year timeline was too long and claimed former UK Prime Minister Theresa May had merely complied with the EUs demands.

Speaking to Express.co.uk, he said: Theresea May was the wrong Prime Minister, and what she did was she agreed to the timeline set by the European Union.

It was a trap from the word go.

When asked to reflect on the current Governments handling of fishing since Brexit, Dr Bull facetious said: Yes weve reduced the licences by three boats or something. Its pathetic.

According to the BBC, it is estimated that the UK will have access to an extra145millionof fishing quota every year by 2026.

In 2019 British vessels caught850millionworth of fish inside UK waters.

Dr Bull, who campaigned and voted for the UK to leave the European Union, was deeply critical of a number of other elements of the agreed Brexit deal.

He labelled the Northern Ireland Protocol, which has disrupted trade between Great Britain and Northern Ireland, as ridiculous and catastrophic.

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The UK and EU agreed that inspections and documents checks for goods delivered between Northern Ireland and Great Britain would not take place along the Irish border.

This led to criticism that a trade border had essentially been created in the Irish Sea.

Dr Bull said: Weve ended up in this ridiculous situation where the United Kingdom has been carved up.

Could you imagine taking a bit of Spain off? It would be untenable. A bit of France?

Taking Northern Ireland out of the United Kingdom and putting an artificial border in the Irish Sea, I think is catastrophic.

The whole point about not creating a hard border on the island or Ireland, yes I get that, and the Good Friday Agreement I get all of that.

But essentially this Prime Minister has threatened the integrity of the United KIngdom and I think thats unforgivable.

Dr Bull was scathing of Boris Johnson and his Government for not taking advantage of the extraordinary Brexit vote.

He also raged at what he said were broken tax promises and insisted that the cost of living crisis must be addressed as a priority.

Dr Bull said: I think the current Government has just doubled down on where the European Union is.

Were now a high tax, high regulation, low growth economy and you can see that with the fact weve got inflation rising, national insurance coming in, our tax bills coming up This isnt what people voted for.

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Brexit fishing row as agreed adjustment period with EU 'trap': Pathetic!' - Express