ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT
Sea Fisheries (Miscellaneous Provisions)
(Amendment no 5)(Jersey) Regulations 200_
(Public)
Purpose of the Report
For the Minister to approve the draft Sea Fisheries (Miscellaneous Provisions)(Amendment no 5)(Jersey) Regulations 200_ for lodging.
Background
Under the terms of the UK/Jersey Fisheries Management Agreement (FMA) Jersey is obliged to introduce certain regulations concerning the management of fishing effort, one such regulation relates to the need for all commercial fishing vessels to operate under the authority of a fishing licence.
The existing local regulations concerning licensing only relate to the activities of all vessels in the Jersey territorial sea and Jersey vessels in a part of the French territorial sea. It is therefore possible for a vessel to fish in areas outside those covered by the regulations and to land catch in Jersey without the need for a licence.
In terms of international fisheries management this leaves a loophole in the licensing framework and at a local level it creates a requirement for considerable resources to be deployed in order to secure a conviction against a fishermen suspected of unlicensed fishing in local waters.
Under the terms of the UK/Jersey Fisheries Management Agreement and in compliance with the Sea Fisheries (Jersey) Law 1994, UK Secretary of State approval is required before certain fisheries regulations can be adopted locally. That approval has now been obtained.
Discussion
The cost of a fishing licence is significant, even for a small vessel and creates a temptation for fishermen to circumvent the need for such a licence. At a local level, fishermen who do not incur the expense of purchasing a licence can potentially accept a lower price for any fish they sell compared to those fishermen in possession of licences. Whilst the scale of any such activity is difficult to assess, legitimate commercial fishermen have requested that effective controls are put in place to prevent it.
The draft regulation effectively creates an offence for a fisherman to land and sell catch from an unlicensed fishing boat. This will be more readily enforceable than the existing controls found in the Sea Fisheries (Licensing of Fishing Boats)(Jersey) Regulations 2003 and will serve to close the current loophole. If approved, the draft will help to put local fishermen on a level playing field with fishermen elsewhere in Europe, where legislation having a similar effect is already in place.
The draft regulation also prohibits any person from selling or keeping any fish (with the intention of selling them) if those fish were first landed in Jersey and the person knows or ought reasonably to suspect that the fish were caught from an unlicensed fishing boat. This measure is intended to ensure that all involved in the trade of fish comply with any requirements they might reasonably be expected to.
The regulations will have no impact on genuine recreational fishermen keeping fish for their own use. The members of the Fisheries and Marine Resources Panel that include leaders from commercial fishing, leisure fishing and angling have discussed and agreed this proposal.
Recommendation
The Minister approves the draft Sea Fisheries (Miscellaneous Provisions)(Amendment no 5)(Jersey) Regulations 200_ and instructs the Greffe to lodge them for debate.
As the type of activity that the draft Regulations are intended to prevent mostly takes place between April and September, it would be beneficial to lodge the draft on 31 March with a provisional date for debate of 12 May 2009.
Written by: | Senior Fisheries Inspector |
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Approved by: | Chris Newton, Director of Environment |
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