Dear Secretary of State,
With Britain’s departure from the Common Fisheries Policy on the horizon, we call on you to ensure that protection of the environment and the livelihoods of the UK’s coastal communities are the top priority when Britain becomes an independent coastal state. As a first step, this means properly protecting our most important and sensitive marine areas, and managing our fisheries sustainably.
At present, supertrawlers, industrial fishing vessels longer than 100 metres, spend thousands of hours every year fishing in marine areas that are meant to be protected. They also dominate the UK’s unfair system of quota distribution, with sustainable local fishers, who form the vast majority of the UK’s fishing fleet, missing out.
As you have recognised, strong marine protection safeguards vulnerable ocean ecosystems, and has significant benefits in restoring fish populations in local waters, which can benefit coastal fishing communities.
On the world stage, the Government has championed protecting 30% of global oceans by 2030, and spearheaded the Global Ocean Alliance, which is an admirable step in the right direction. However, allowing industrial supertrawlers and other destructive fishing vessels to fish inside the UK’s most sensitive marine ecological areas undermines the Government’s vision and leadership.
Using the Government’s renewed powers outside of the Common Fisheries Policy, we urge you to ban destructive industrial fishing vessels like supertrawlers from fishing in the UK’s Marine Protected Areas. A ban would prove that this government is serious about marine protection, and pave the way for a network of fully or highly protected Marine Protected Areas off limits to all destructive industrial activities, covering at least 30% of the UK’s waters by 2030.
The Government must seize this historic opportunity to increase the health of our oceans, and support the communities that depend on them.
List of signatories
Public figures
Gillian Anderson
Alison Sudol
Alison Steadman
David de Rothschild
Michael Elwyn
Sir Ranulph Fiennes
Colin Dack
Michael Palin
Joanna Lumley
Robert Linsday
Scientists and NGOs
Dr Emma Cavan, Imperial College London
Will McCallum, Greenpeace UK
Harriet Allen, Marine Biologist
Charles Clover, Blue Marine Foundation
MPs (85 total)
- Apsana Begum, Poplar and Limehouse
- David Linden, Glasgow East
- Wera Hobhouse, Bath, Liberal Democrat
- Jonathan Djanogly, Huntingdon, Conservative
- Johnny McNally, Falkirk, SNP
- Victoria Atkins, Louth and Horncastle, Conservative
- Kevin Hollinrake, Thirsk and Malton, Conservative
- David Rutley, Macclesfield, Conservative
- David Morris, Morecambe and Lunesdale, Conservative
- Valerie Vaz, Walsall South, Labour
- Debbie Abrahams, Oldham East and Saddleworth, Labour
- Liz Saville Roberts, Dwyfor Meirionnydd, Plaid Cymru
- Patricia Gibson, North Ayrshire and Arran, SNP
- Sarah Dines, Derbyshire Dales, Conservative
- Mhairi Black, Paisley and Renfrewshire South, SNP
- Jacob Young, Redcar, Conservative
- Diane Abbott, Hackney North and Stoke Newington, Labour
- Rachel Reeves, Leeds West, Labour
- Alan Whitehead, Southampton, Test, Labour
- Clive Lewis, Norwich South, Labour
- Tracy Brabin, Batley and Spen, Labour
- Neale Hanvey, Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath, SNP
- Kim Johnson, Liverpool, Riverside, Labour
- Sarah Olney, Richmond Park, Lib Dem
- Munira Wilson, Twickenham, Lib Dem
- Damian Collins, Folkestone and Hythe, Conservatives
- Simon Jupp, East Devon, Conservatives
- Kevin Brennan, Labour
- Julian Lewis, Independent
- Liam Fox, North Somerset, Conservative
- Andrew Bridgen, North West Leicestershire, Conservatie
- Stephen McPartland, Stevenage, Conservative
- Craig Mackinlay, South Thanet, Conservative
- Scott Benton, Blackpool South, Conservative
- Shaun Bailey, West Bromwich West, Conservative
- Ian Byrne, Liverpool, West Derby, Labour
- Lisa Nandy, Wigan, Labour
- Paul Maskey, Belfast West, Sinn Féin
- Stephen Farry, North Down, Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
- Ben Everitt, Milton Keynes North, Conservative
- John Howell, Henley, Conservatie
- Yvonne Fovargue, Makerfield, Labour
- Clive Betts, Sheffield South East, Labour
- Drew Hendry, Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey, SNP
- Royston Smith, Southampton, Itchen, Conservative
- Caroline Lucas, Brighton, Pavilion, Greens
- Henry Smith, Crawley, Conservative
- James Gray, North Wiltshire, Conservative
- Richard Burgon, Leeds East, Labour
- Craig Williams, Montgomeryshire, Conservative
- Andrew Gwynne, Denton and Reddish, Labour
- Stewart Hosie, Dundee East, SNP
- Jeremy Corbyn, Islington North, Labour
- Carla Lockhart, Upper Bann, DUP
- Hywel Williams, Arfon, Plaid Cymru
- Siobhain McDonagh, Mitcham and Morden, Labour
- Tony Lloyd, Rochdale, Labour
- Paul Girvan, South Antrim, DUP
- Ben Lake, Ceredigion, Plaid Cymru
- Christopher Chope, Christchurch, Conservative
- Angela Crawley, Lanark and Hamilton East, SNP
- Graham Stringer, Blackley and Broughton, Labour
- Jon Cruddas, Dagenham and Rainham, Labour
- Claire Hanna, Belfast South, Labour
- Barry Gardiner, Brent North, Labour
- Maria Eagle, Garston and Halewood, Labour
- Mike Hill, Hartlepool, Labour
- John McDonnell, Hayes and Harlington, Labour
- Mike Penning, Hemel Hampstead,Conservative
- Desmond Swayne, New Forest West, Conservative
- Lee Rowley, North East Derbyshire, Conservative
- Roger Gale, North Thanet, Conservative
- Chris Bryant, Rhondda, Labour
- Bill Esterson, Sefton Central, Labour
- Andrew Selous, South West Bedfordshire, Conservative
- Tim Farron, Westmorland and Lonsdale, Lib Dem
- Steve Brine, Winchester, Conservative
- Jamie Stone, Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross, Lib Dem
- Tonia Antoniazzi, Gower, Labour
- Catherine West, Hornsey and Wood Green, Labour
- Peter Kyle, Hove, Labour
- Cat Smith, Lancaster and Fleetwood, Labour
- Ian Levy, Blyth Valley, Conservative
- Bell Ribeiro-Addy, Streatham, Labour
- Kenny MacAskill, East Lothian, SNP