Discarding is over: the tragic waste of fresh fish was brought in by bonkers EU rules.
The EU finally accepted the British argument that the "top down" system of micro-managing
fisheries from Brussels was failing and that decision-making needed to be
decentralised. There will be widesprtead changes to the Common Fisheries Policy.
The method of allocating fishing quotas EU-wide has contributed to the
serious depletion of stocks, the EU Commission accepted. Crews that haul in more than
the agreed quota often had to throw large quantities of dead fish back into the sea -
the much-criticised "discards" policy - rather than selling or giving the fish away. The new policy wiull be a hiuge step forward for the fishing industry and a sign that the EU can change. I have no deep sea fishermen in my patch but this policy change will be great news all along Britsh coastlines. For more details see here:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-north-east-orkney-shetland-21356091
