We’re back following the General Election to share the latest on Fisheries Management Plans (FMPs).
We have been busy behind the scenes preparing for the public consultation on five new Defra-led draft FMPs on:
- Cockle
- North Sea and Channel sprat (jointly with the Scottish Government)
- Queen scallop
- Southern North Sea and Channel skates and rays
- Southern North Sea demersal non-quota species
We are also taking forward the implementation of the existing published plans:
- Bass (jointly with the Welsh Government)
- Channel non-quota demersal species
- Crab and lobster (and crawfish)
- King scallop (jointly with the Welsh Government)
- Whelk
- Southern North Sea and Eastern Channel mixed flatfish
With the support of new ministers, we’re excited to move forward with fresh ideas, energy and direction. Our blog is one part of our approach to working collaboratively with you, so with that we are officially relaunching our blog, and we encourage you to guide us on what you want to see about FMPs.
You can do this by commenting on our posts and you can also tell us what you want to hear about by following the feedback link on About this blog – Fisheries Management Plans to contact us.
We’re got some exciting new content coming soon, aimed at providing transparency to FMP development and implementation. As things progress you can expect to hear about progress and how decisions are being made. We’ll take you behind the scenes to meet our policy teams, understand the processes and see change in action.
Our goal is to make everything more open, accessible, inclusive and to keep you informed and at the centre of everything we do. Your voice matters, and your needs and opinions will help to drive actions and decisions as we navigate this new period of change.
Thanks for joining us on this journey and subscribe to make sure you don’t miss any of our updates!
23 comments
Comment by Greg posted on
This looks like a positive move. I am interested in the Bass FMP. It would be great to see an update on each of the actions it contains. Is that possible?
tia.
Comment by Nicola posted on
Hi Greg, Thank you for the feedback (and being the first to comment on the blog!), we’re glad you like this approach.
We’ll provide updates on the blog as we move on through the implementation journey for each FMP, so come back to the site, or subscribe to receive alerts about new posts.
Nicola~ blog editor
Comment by Greg posted on
That's great Nicola. I see that the Wales group is already up and running. Do you have a timescale for the England group?
Comment by Nicola posted on
We do, the intention is to establish the England Bass Management Group in late Autumn.
Comment by Greg posted on
Hi Nicola, can you explain the process for choosing the working group members, who they are (if known) and especailly who will represent the angling community, thanks again, Greg
Comment by Nicola posted on
Hi Greg, The membership of the Bass Management Group (BMG) will include representatives from Defra and Welsh government, as well as scientific leads, regulators, environmental representatives, recreational angling bodies and commercial fishing bodies. The final membership for the BMG is still being put together but further information will be shared more widely once established.
Comment by Michael posted on
I'd like to see some changes to the priorities identified by Defra in the BASS FMP.
Surely addressing the long standing illegal targeting with gill nets in the SW has to be a short term goal.
Comment by Nicola posted on
Hi Michael, thank you for your comment and our bass FMP policy team have advised:
We are committed to delivering the measures set out in the bass FMP to manage stocks in English and Welsh waters.
To ensure effective management of bass stocks the FMP, which was published in December 2023, identifies 9 goals focused on domestic management priorities. These goals were created in collaboration with stakeholders.
In particular Goal 4 - Ensure full compliance with bass regulations specifically seeks to improve collaboration between regulators on targeted enforcement as a short-term measure which relates to your comment.
We agreed with stakeholders that future management of the fishery should be developed using approaches that bring together fishers, scientists, policymakers, regulators, and other stakeholders, and to support this approach a management group is being set up to consider implementation of the measures set out within the FMP. We’ll talk about the group in a future blog post.
Comment by Michael posted on
Thanks for the reply.
Re "In particular Goal 4 - Ensure full compliance with bass regulations"
It appears a major problem is with the writing of the regulations. Regarding gill nets without a definition of bycatch some IFCAs have stated the regulations are unenforceable so are treating allowance as quota.
Please reassure me resolving this will be a part of the "ensuring compliance" and a short term goal.
Comment by Nicola posted on
Hi Michael,
Thank you for your comments on the FMP blog. As the comment thread is getting quite long with multiple questions it would be better to go directly to the bass FMP team. You can email them at BassFMP@defra.gov.uk so they can answer your questions.
Many thanks, Nicola
Comment by Michael posted on
Thanks for your reply,
"specifically seeks to improve collaboration between regulators on targeted enforcement as a short-term measure "
Is your reply related to the memorandum of understanding proposed on the allowing sharing information between the MMO and IFCAs ? who could be in the same building ? Or something else appreciate some clarity.
Comment by Nicola posted on
Thanks Michael,
Improved collaboration between regulators will look at all aspects of cooperation between enforcement bodies with respects to bass management
Nicola~ blog editor
Comment by Martin W posted on
On the face of it, this looks very encouraging from a Bass perspective.
However, this needs to be tempered somewhat, because we have been here before many times.
I would like to see this as a genuine attempt to take fisheries management forward, and honestly believe this is a massive opportunity to do so.
The frustrating part is realising that many of the recommendations in the current Bass FMP have come up time and time again, and the Science is there to back it up, with years worth of data too.
As above, the opportunity is there to do something really special....I really hope it doesn't turn into a box ticking exercise where meetings become more important than actions.
Comment by David posted on
It has been illegal to target bass with nets since 2017. Netters can only land bycatch of bass. This legislation has never been enforced because Defra have failed to give a definition of bycatch.
This repeated failure has facilitated an illegal targeted bass fishery for nets.
The situation can be easily resolved by stating that bycatch in nets can make up no more than 30% of the total catch.
Comment by David posted on
The illegal targeting of bass in nets is a real issue. When the bass aggregate off Cornwall in Nov/ Dec / Jan they come from various parts of the country. When they shoal up they are at their most vulnerable and an easy target for netters. Around 80% of bass landings into Cornish ports for the whole year take place during these months. It has a huge negative impact on the biomass and on recruitment. It effects commercial and recreational fishers from many other areas. Those that suffer most are the sustainable hand liners and all those involved in the recreational bass fishery which is the most profitable of all sectors and vital for the economy of all coastal communities. This issue is so easy to fix.
Comment by Martin W posted on
Just to add to Davids point above, the vast majority of net caught landings in the SW have been above 90% Bass composition, and a good proportion being 100% Bass landings - this is not Bycatch by anyones definition? These boats are landing and then returning and doing the same thing!
When you add in Bass being landed as being line caught when actually being net caught, using another loophole - dual authorisation, and the picture becomes clearer regarding the Bass stock Biomass.
A few quick fixes could result in a swift recovery where Coastal Communities can see real benefits from Recreational Anglers, where the real monetary benefit lies. whilst also benefitting sustainable commercial practices - surely a WIN, WIN?
Comment by Steven posted on
I agree with David's analysis.
There is considerable evidence that this loophole is being abused by a persistent minority during pre-spawning in late autumn, as is the dual authorisation (to use both hook & line and nets to catch bass), where some are claiming that landings of 100s of kilos of bass are being caught on hook and line, by one vessel in one trip, when the reality is that this quantity of bass is most likely net caught.
One only has to refer to MMO bass landings data for confirmation.
Unfortunately, there seems to be little appetite to challenge these transgressions by enforcement agencies due to the vague bycatch regulations.
Hopefully, this will be addressed in the (very) short-term as part of the Bass FMP work schedule.
Comment by MichaelB posted on
Regarding membership of any of the working groups for the management plans, I notice for the Welsh Bass group that has now met 3 times there's a requirement that
3.2 The Welsh Government needs group members to represent the views of others, not just individual opinions.
4.4. Members are expected to seek views of those they represent.
Will this apply to the English working groups and will their be clarity on how all members are doing this. I haven't a clue on what the members of the Welsh group are going to say only what was said from the minutes weeks after.
Co-production ?
Comment by Danny posted on
Without enforcement any plan will fail. Making rules and applying them should be the minimum standard for any management plan.
Comment by Nicola posted on
Thank you for your comment. We recognise the importance of effective and proportionate enforcement in ensuring the success of any management plan.
Defra is committed to working closely with relevant authorities to address concerns around enforcement. We will continue to communicate any changes to fisheries management regulations through our existing communications channels via the Marine Management Organisation (MMO) and the Inshore Fisheries Conservation Authorities (IFCAs).
Ensuring compliance and maintaining transparency remains a top priority for us.
Comment by Nicola posted on
David, Steven, Martin and Michael- thank you all for your comments on this post which launched the blog and gives a status update on some of the Defra led FMPs.
The blog is new to us all and we hope to develop it with you- our stakeholders. We ask you to keep your comments in line with the moderation guidelines. If comments don’t meet the guidelines, they will not be published. We look at if a comment is:
- on topic- Make sure your comment is relevant to the post you are commenting on. Give us feedback on the post or ask us questions about it.
- concise- you have asked us what concise is and to confirm, this would ideally be a sentence to a paragraph and under 100 words. We’ll update the guidelines so that this is clearer for all users.
The comments on this post have largely been on details about the Bass FMP rather than the FMP blog post. The issue(s) you raise was/were discussed during the development of the Bass FMP and consulted on ahead of publication in December 2023. We will take forward the measures in the FMP through the Bass Management Group from autumn 2024 and I would encourage you to feed your views into the group. Alternatively, please contact us at BassFMP@defra.gov.uk.
As each FMP is implemented, we will post updates and there is one coming soon on what work is being done to implement the published FMPs along with opportunities to get involved and have your say.
Comment by Greg posted on
I see that new rules are to be applied to Bass commercial quota management from Dec 16th. Have these been agreed with the England Bass management group?
Comment by Nicola posted on
Hi Greg,
Of the nine goals focusing on domestic management priorities published in the bass FMP (December 2023), Goal 5: Maximise the benefits of bass fishing for local coastal communities proposed moving annually set commercial catch limits from secondary legislation into licence conditions, to deliver flexible management of fisheries more quickly and in line with evolving evidence.
Following public consultation, stakeholders requested that this change was enacted promptly, therefore secondary legislation was laid in Parliament on 16 October 2024, and subject to parliamentary scrutiny, will come into force on 16 December 2024. You can read about it on this blog post- https://defrafmp.blog.gov.uk/2024/10/16/new-fisheries-management-measures-what-to-expect-this-december/
Other short-term measures within the bass FMP will be considered through the Bass Management Group which convened for the first time on 8 November 2024. For further information regarding the delivery of the FMP and the bass management group please keep an eye out on the blog as we will share updates when they are available.