Former Minister of Fisheries Frédéric Cuvillier put into perspective on Franceinfo Wednesday the impact of the measures taken by Paris in the context of the Franco-British conflict following Brexit.
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“The French retaliations, as announced at the national level, are limited”, relativized Wednesday October 27 on Franceinfo the former Minister of Fisheries Frederic Cuvillier, while the French government announced in particular the prohibition to British fishing vessels to land in French ports from November 2. This measure was taken by Paris in response to the low number of fishing licenses granted by the United Kingdom and the Channel Island of Jersey to French fishermen in its waters, following Brexit.
“France must take measures with force”, assures Frédéric Cuviller, who is mayor of Boulogne-sur-Mer (Pas-de-Calais), “but it must do so in consultation with the ten fishing countries of the European Union.” The eleven countries signed a joint statement on October 11 criticizing London’s decisions on post-Brexit fishing licenses. “We have to be able to show European determination. For that, there has to be a strong voice.”
The former minister said he was worried about the outcome of this conflict: “Ten months after Brexit, our fishermen do not know when they will be able to exercise their profession normally”, he explained. “We risk scrapping boats because there will be no economic solution for a number of them. We cannot bring ourselves to have ports that would be empty of their fishing boats. “