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A Labour MP has said Iceland's accession to the EU should be put on hold.
Tom Greatrex (Lab, Rutherglen and Hamilton West) complained that both Iceland and the Faroe Islands have hugely increased their catches of mackerel and have not co-operated with the European Commission.
He said plans to ban Icelandic fishing boats from landing at EU ports will be ineffective.
Greatrex called for Iceland's accession to the EU to be delayed until they come to an agreement.
Iceland increased its catch of the fish six-fold as there was no deal with the EU last year, capturing most of the stock in the North Atlantic.
Fisheries minister Richard Benyon said the issue has been discussed by the council of ministers and the commission is ready to impose sanctions if there is no agreement.
He added that it is a strange way for a country that wants to join the EU to act.
The issue of fish discards was also discussed at today's Defra questions.
Nigel Adams (Con, Selby and Ainsty) asked if any lessons could be learnt from nations such as Norway that are not party to the common fisheries policy.
He added that the CFP has "absolutely failed".
Benyon said the policy is both broken and a centralised, top-down system.
He said fish stock management should go hand in hand with managing the marine environment.
Matthew Hancock (Con, West Suffolk) said many people were shocked at the levels of fish discarded, as documented in a recent TV programme.
Benyon said he applauds the work of TV chef Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall in exposing the issue and paid tribute to the work the last government did in trying to reduce fish discards.
He said that reform of the CFP will require alliances with other EU states who are, like the UK, at the "radical end of the reform spectrum".
Shadow environment minister William Bain called for investment in more selective nets, an incease in the scope of the catch quota and CCTV on fishing boats to monitor what fish are being caught and discarded.
Benyon said the UK government has a very clear strategy to bring down discards, such as schemes to create markets for fish that are currently thrown away.
Environment secretary Caroline Spelman was challenged over plans to 'sell' the national forests.
Julian Huppert (Lib Dem, Cambridge) asked for assurances that permitted access to woodland, including for bikes and horses, would not be affected.
Spelman said that current 'permissive rights' apply to land not owned by the Forestry Commission.
Barry Gardiner (Lab, Brent North) asked how much revenue will be raised over the next decade by the sale.
Spelman said planned sales are £100m over the next four years, with the money raised forming part of "Defra's overall provision".
She said there is a statutory three month consultation, after which ministers will decide how to proceed "in a timely fashion".
Shadow environment secretary Mary Creagh said despite the consultation the government is already selling off 10,000 hectares of woodland, more than Labour sold in 13 years.
Spelman said there has been a continuous programme of selling for three decades.
Creagh countered that Labour reinvested the money it raised back in the forests, while this government will spend it on flood defences and other Defra budgets.
John Pugh (Lib Dem, Southport) asked about the state of the bee population.
Environment minister James Paice said there was a significant reduction in bee deaths in 2009/10 compared to previous years.
He added that he hopes the £4.3m invested by the last government on bee health will deliver results.
Article Comments
Are they mad? What possible benefit do the Icelanders think they will gain from membership of the EU? Merely the insane policy of throwing back into the sea perfectly edible fish, in order to maintain an artificial market , ought to be enough to deter a country so dependent on fishing from touching the blessed thin with a bargepole!
Furthermore, if they stop to consider the plethora of petty regulations to which existing members such as the UK are subjected to by an unelected bureaucracy, they will surely come to their senses.
Laissez-faire
4th Feb 2011 at 8:51 am
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