Tag Archives: France
Channel fishermen protest to ban supertrawlers, fly-shooters
Fishermen from the UK and France have met in the English Channel to protest against industrial fishing practices. Boats from Dover, Rye, Newhaven and Boulogne-sur-mer gathered in the Bassurelle Sandbank marine protected area. They called for politicians to ban supertrawlers and fly-shooting from protected Channel waters. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) said vessels must follow UK sustainability rules. >click to read< 12:33
Wooden Hull Scalloper built in Paimpol
‘For me, a boat is made of wood. That’s what I prefer,’ said Normandy fisherman Lilian Guadebois, who has been skipper for eleven years. Sainte-Thérèse was launched in Paimpol at the end of January, after eighteen months of work. This 11.98 metre long, 6.55 metre beam shellfish vessel will be worked with a crew of four to fish for scallops in the Bay of Seine. To build this new vessel, which will be based in Honfleur (Calvados), the young 
skipper turned to Fabien Hémeury’s yard in Kerpalud. ‘The boat is made from 100% French oak because we want to support the local timber industry,’ said Fabien Hémeury, who works with a team of six carpenters. According to him, wooden newbuilds are coming back into fashion, particularly because of their long-term solidity. Excellent photo gallery, >click to read< 17:41
French fisherman won’t pay for British Brexit failure
Since the beginning of the year, Britain and France have been at odds about post-Brexit fishing licences for UK seas. The talks are still ongoing, but both parties have threatened to take action, and mistranslations haven’t helped matters. If they obtain a discretionary permit issued by Britain, French fishermen may continue to fish between six and 12 miles off the UK shore and off Guernsey and Jersey until 2026 under the Brexit trade and cooperation agreement (TCA). >click to read< 08:44
Canada and France reach agreement with total allowable catch rollover of 3Ps cod
Today, the Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard, the Honourable Joyce Murray, announced that an agreement has been reached with France regarding 3Ps cod for the 2022-23 fishing season. Both countries intend to roll over the current total allowable catch (TAC) of 1,346 tonnes. Canada and France (in respect of Saint Pierre and Miquelon) co-manage fish stocks, including cod, in the 3Ps zone off the south coast of Newfoundland and Labrador. Under the Procès-Verbal Agreement, the two countries meet annually to negotiate management measures, including the TAC of these shared stocks in the North Atlantic. >click to read< 20:35
Four of a Kind! Scalloper Quartet for Normandy Fishermen
A group of French fishermen from Ouistreham followed the example of their colleagues along the coast in Cherbourg and went to a Turkish shipbuilder to order four identical scalloper/trawlers, which were built in only eight months to be shipped to France. Designed by French company Archi Delion, the 13.44 metre by 6.40 metre breadth vessels are designed primarily for scalloping but will also pursue other fisheries outside the scallop season. Photos, video, >click to read< 09:12
Fuel: in Lorient, the trawler Le Dolmen will not go to sea for glory
The war in Ukraine is yet to impact fully on the price of diesel fuel in the UK. Handline, inshore and gillnetters burn considerably less fuel than trawlers and even more so than beam trawlers – the biggest of which can typically consume somewhere in the region of £3,000 per day in red diesel – which means the expenses alone for a trip could exceed well over 50%. In Cornwall, CFPO are telling its members that, they’re very aware of the rising fuel costs & the toll this is taking on the fleet. Discussions between @GOVUK and industry are taking place. This Friday, @NFFO_UK will hold an emergency Executive Committee meeting on this issue. French fishermen are already reacting to the increase in their fuel costs as this translated story testifies. Video, >click to read< 12:35
Atomic Attraction: Wind Power’s Abject Failure Forces Europe to Embrace Nuclear Power
To call Europe’s rapid embrace of nuclear power ‘passionate’ is not overstatement. Much to the horror of wind and solar acolytes, a growing number of EU members are ready to declare nuclear power is not only clean and green, but wholly sustainable. Wind and solar-obsessed Germans and Brits are watching power prices go into orbit and the pro-renewables camp has been forced to grapple with months-long wind droughts when so-called ‘green’ energy couldn’t be bought at any price. Necessity may well be the mother of invention, but the stark realisation that wind power output can collapse for days and weeks on end is certainly the mother of a renewed attraction to nuclear power. >click to read< 11:16
Brittany fishing company La Houle builds for the future
Brittany fishing company La Houle has been facing a case of invest or die, according to managing director Jacques Pichon, and a new addition marks the start of renewed investment in its fleet. The new trawler has raised a few eyebrows in St Guénolé, as its design is a departure from the usual French layout for vessels in this size bracket. La Houle went to Danish designer and shipbuilder Vestværft for its new trawler. Behind this decision is also La Houle’s ownership with Irish shareholders, including Niall Deasy who already runs two Vestværft-built trawlers of his own. photos, >click to read< 12:19
France wants EU to start legal case against UK
Speaking on Friday, Minister for European Affairs Clement Beaune told reporters that France had obtained 93% of the post-Brexit fishing licenses it claims the UK should have granted to its trawlers. According to Maritime Minister Annick Girardin, who spoke alongside Beaune, France was still pushing for a further 73 licenses to fish in British waters. Paris says it will not drop its protests until all of the outstanding licenses are granted. >click to read< 13:30
French minister says, We still want a ‘few dozen’ more fishing licences
France has received 93% of the fishing licences it requested but wants Britain to issue a few dozen more, It comes after the UK and Jersey Governments on Saturday granted further licences to French fishing boats in an apparent attempt to resolve the long-running dispute over their post-Brexit rights to trawl British waters, and as technical talks over several more vessels continue. “We still have a few dozen to obtain, around 60. We are looking at every file that remains. We will not let down any of these fishermen.” >click to read< 14:36
EU deadline in UK-France fishing row set to expire
An EU deadline for Britain to grant licences to dozens of French fishing boats is set to expire today, with Paris threatening legal action unless a last-minute compromise can be found. France says that 104 of its boats still lack licences to operate in British and Channel Island waters that should have been granted under a Brexit deal Britain signed with the European Union in December last year. Britain denies discriminating,,, >click to read< 11:49
‘French fishermen want direct talks with Jersey’
Chris Le Masurier, of the Jersey Oyster Company, who delivered produce to St Malo yesterday, said that the fishers were protesting against the political process going through the EU and UK rather than being settled locally.,, ‘I was delayed for an hour because I was allotted a slot at the time of the protest, which was at 8am. I was skippering the vessel. After that I moved alongside one of the French boats for a chat. I spoke to Pascal Lecler, the chairman of the fisheries committee in Brittany. He said that he wanted me to pass a message to the Jersey government and that was to come and talk directly with Normandy and Brittany. He gave me a Breton flag and I then dropped off all my seafood and returned to the Island,’ >click to read< 08:39
French fisherman blockading British ships over Brexit licenses
French fisherman have blockaded British ships after feeling ‘humiliated’ by Britain over post-Brexit operating licences. The fisherman lined their boats across the entrance to St Malo port from dawn to stop the British Normandy Trader getting into the Brittany port from Jersey. The disgruntled men aim to target ferries arriving in Ouistreham and Calais,,, Pascal Lecler, one of the fishermen said: “We’re hostage to politics. It doesn’t make us happy to be here, but it can’t go on.’ >click to read< 07:45
French fisherman fear Paris is ready to surrender to the UK over access to British waters
France’s Maritime Minister Annick Girardin said French fisherman who have not been given a licence by the UK will get up to 60million euros (£50million) to cover their lost earnings. But the French skippers have lashed out at the plans, accusing the government of ‘abandoning them’ and ‘lowering its pants’ to Britain over the post-Brexit fishing row. They also accused France of admitting defeat, despite Girardin insisting that the government will continue its ‘fight every day’ to get 150 post-Brexit fishing licences Paris claims it is still short of. >click to read< 09:41
COP That Wind & Solar: Nuclear Power Drives French Renewables Resistance
The French already get more than 70% of their power from nuclear plants. Now, thanks to a massive month-long wind power output collapse, that proportion is destined to increase. Following Europe’s ‘disastrous’ wind drought, that saw wind power output plummet throughout most of September and into October, and early November, the need for reliable power was never more keenly felt. Eager to avoid being locked into Russian gas supplies, like his German neighbours, French President, Emmanuel Macron has decided to reverse France’s policy of winding down its nuclear power generation fleet in favour of wind and solar, backed up with costly to run gas-fired plants. >video, click to read< 18:00
UK inquest finds submarine did not cause 2004 sinking of French trawler
The judge Nigel Lickley QC, who has overseen an inquest on the tragedy, ruled that the French trawler F/V Bugaled Breizh sank after its fishing gear snagged on the seabed, causing it to heel – tip to one side – and take in water. Relatives of the men lost in the tragedy have long believed the boat sank after a submarine became tangled in its fishing gear, and they saw the inquest in London as a last chance to get to what they believe is the truth. The judge said he believed that the sinking, on 15 January 2004, was a fishing accident. >click to read< 22:15
Impounded fishing trawler docks in Shoreham – Donegal skipper thanks supporters
The scallop dredger Cornelis Gert Jan left Le Havre on Wednesday after being held there since last week, when France accused it of fishing in its waters without a proper licence. “We are pleased to have this matter resolved and delighted that our crew and vessel are now able to return home. The crew have acted with calmness and professionalism throughout the entire incident. photos, >click to read< Donegal skipper ay centre of fishing row thanks supporters – In a message to west Donegal independent councillor, Micheál Cholm Mac Giolla Easbuig, Mr Ward said: “Just busy now trying to get all ready to get to sea. “Please tell everyone at home that I am so grateful for all their messages and support.” >click to read< 09:51
France lets UK fishing trawler depart – Vessel reappears on licensed list amid claims of an admin error
A director of a British fishing trawler that was impounded by French authorities in a row over post-Brexit fishing rights, said he was relieved the vessel had been allowed to leave and would set off for home later. The Scottish-registered scallop dredger, the Cornelis-Gert Jan, had been held in Le Havre. >click to read< – British Trawler detained in fishing row reappears on licensed list amid claims on admin error – When the Cornelis-Gertjan was detained last week the owners claimed their vessel was legally fishing for scallops in EU waters. Now the Cornelis-Gertjan is back on the list and in the spreadsheet section marked ‘EU Waters Access’ it says “YES”. Video, >click to read< 14:32
Canadian Perspective: France and the U.K. are feuding over fish. What is this war of words really about?
It’s war! Well, it’s a fish war. And like past fish wars, the words are ferocious, the stakes are tiny, gunboats make an appearance, but the shots fired are almost always verbal. This conflict pits France against Britain — and not for the first time. Think of the Napoleonic wars in the 1800s, the Seven Years’ War in the 1700s (when Canada was a prize) and, of course, the big one: the Hundred Years’ War. That was some time ago. It ended in 1453. At stake in the current conflict are — wait for it — a couple hundred fishing licences for small French boats. These were introduced after the Brexit vote in 2016, when Britain took back control of its coastal waters. >click to read< 10:20
UK boat detained by France amid fishing rights row
A British trawler has been seized by France and another has been fined, amid an escalating row over post-Brexit fishing rights. French maritime minister Annick Girardin said the ships were cautioned during checks off Le Havre overnight. She said the first did not comply right away and the second was not allowed to fish in French waters so was detained. >click to read< 08:28
Results of probe into French trawler tragedy due in weeks
The conclusions of a British inquest into the 2004 sinking of a French trawler, which killed five people, will be delivered on November 5, the coroner said on Thursday. Judge Nigel Lickley has been hearing evidence since early October about how the Bugaled Breizh sank suddenly off Cornwall, southwest England, despite good weather. The bodies of two of the fishermen who died were recovered by British search and rescue teams. Lawyers for the victims’ families maintain that a submarine on exercises in the area at the time could have struck the boat and pulled it down. >click to read< 14:25
Inquest into Bugaled Breizh deaths sunk off Lizard coast of Cornwall
The Bugaled Breizh went down on January 15, 2004 off the Lizard Peninsula in favourable conditions, with no apparent defects to the vessel. The possibility a submarine may have become entangled in the trawling gear and dragged the vessel under has been proposed since it sank. But an inquest at the High Court heard on Thursday that the system of wires, chains, weights and nets that made up the trawling rig was found relatively intact on the seabed. >click to read< 08:44
Inquest: No evidence British submarine sank French trawler in 2004
Ever since the boat sank, the families of the sailors have demanded a proper investigation into the men’s deaths. They have maintained over the years that the sinking could have been caused by a submarine becoming caught in the ship’s nets, something the Ministry of Defence has denied. The inquest heard on Wednesday that the Royal Navy Police Special Investigation Branch (RNPSIB) would not have been blocked from investigating the potential involvement of British combat vessels. >click to read< 07:51
UK sub ‘not involved’ in 2004 French trawler tragedy
A British military submarine linked to the sinking of a French fishing trawler nearly 18 years ago had nothing to do with the incident, the UK vessel’s former captain said Tuesday, sparking fury from victims’ relatives. The families of the five crew members who died on the Bugaled Breizh on January 15, 2004 are hoping an inquest at the High Court in London will confirm their view that the boat was pulled down by the British submarine HMS Turbulent. But the Turbulent’s former commander Andrew Coles said the nuclear vessel was docked on the day of the tragedy. “We definitely weren’t involved,” he told the hearing in London, echoing other witness testimony at the hearing. >click to read< 16:17
Extortion: France will reduce Jersey electricity supply this winter, unless fishermen granted licences for British waters
Speaking on Friday, outspoken French European Affairs Minister Clement Beaune said his government would hold firm against Britain and continue to demand more fishing licences. The European minister said that France may be forced to cut electricity, although not totally, to the Channel Island of Jersey, a self-governing dependency of the United Kingdom, during the winter as part of a “targeted” retaliation in the fishing dispute. >click to read< 07:39
French fisherman cause Brexit storm on Jersey’s power-supplying beach
French fishermen, angry over fishing rights, have staged a protest on Jersey’s power-supplying beach. On Saturday, September 18, over 100 people from France’s fishing industry gathered on Armanville beach in Normandy to protest the Brexit-inflamed feud. The French beach where they staged the protest is where a power cable supplying Jersey with its electrical needs makes land. The protest comes amid frustration at plans to restrict the number of French fishing vessels which will have access to Jersey’s waters. >click to read< 18:06
Normandy and Brittany Fishermen to protest Saturday
Fishermen from Normandy and Brittany are due to stage a protest at the French end of one of the undersea cables that supplies Jersey with electricity on Saturday. The demonstration is due to take place on the beach at Pirou, a few miles south of Portbail, ahead of the 30 September deadline for fishermen to submit data required to operate in Jersey waters beyond the end of this month. Earlier this year, French Minister of the Sea Annick Girardin, threatened that France could cut off Jersey’s connection with the French grid over the row on fishing rights. >click to read< 13:53
Aim High! Turning an elderly trawler into a purse seiner
After an eight-month rebuild, working to plans developed by Coprexma, former trawler Commodore, has become a purse seiner launched at the end of July in Le Guilvinec. Now SanTiago is about to join the fleet in Saint-Guénolé, where it will land sardines and anchovies caught in the Bay of Audierne and off Douarnenez. Work began on the 15.87 metre 5.56 metre beam boat at the end of 2020 at the Hénaff shipyard, which had just completed Les Antilles II. Most of the work to transform the old wooden trawler consisted of modernising the working deck and gunwales to improve crew comfort and adapt to the requirements of its new role. Photos, >click to read< 18:53
Call for ‘full investigation’ into alleged bluefin tuna fishing breach
Tensions with France increased again last week after a French vessel was accused of catching about 1.2 tonnes of bluefin tuna off the west coast. There is a ban on targeting or catching the fish in Jersey waters, but the species can be caught in French seas. The government has confirmed it is investigating reports of the species being caught in the Island’s waters. According to the Wildlife (Jersey) Law 2021, anyone found to have killed protected species in Jersey is liable to two years in prison and a fine. The JEP asked the government what was being done to investigate the matter, whether any officers were travelling to France to speak to the skipper involved in the alleged incident and how long the inquiry was expected to take. No response had been received by the time of going to print. >click to read< 09:45
English Channel Fly-Shooter Agreement Breakdown – Opinions are divided!
For some, fly-shooting is seen as a gentle method of fishing, with low fuel consumption and limited seabed impact. This is a technique has become increasingly popular, although in the Eastern Channel region and in other parts of France it has come in for criticism from small-scale fishermen, who claim the fly-shooters are stripping their grounds bare in record time. Fly-shooting is now prohibited inside the 12-mile zone off the coast of Brittany, and in the Channel, the situation has become critical, with more and more French, Belgian, Dutch and English fly-shooters operating in the region. >photo’s, click to read< 13:29
