France warned Boris Johnson yesterday that “all options” remained open to retaliate against Britain over fishing rights, after a meeting with the Brexit minister Lord Frost.
Clément Beaune, the French Europe minister, said that there remained “significant differences” with the government about the process for awarding fishing licences, and retaliatory action remained a possibility.
In a sign that both sides are keen to de-escalate the crisis the men agreed to meet again next week to “give a chance” for dialogue to succeed.
“All the options are open and all the options are possible,” Beaune said. Gabriel Attal, the French government spokesman, underlined that the threat of sanctions remained open: “We will see what comes with those meetings.
“As you know, the control measures that we announced are still suspended but all options are on the table, and we may need to implement those measures if we do not reach an agreement.”
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A senior government source said the talks had been cordial but the position of ministers had not changed: “Although there was no change in our positions, the mood in Paris was good. We’re glad that the French want to keep talking and haven’t yet followed through on their unlawful threats.
“Lord Frost made clear to Clément Beaune that boats must provide the necessary evidence if they want to receive a licence. Technical talks will continue. We’ll see where they get to when Frost and Beaune talk next week.”
France is demanding an overhaul to the way fishing is licensed in the Channel to resolve the dispute over access to waters. Under the present arrangement, French boats are only allowed to fish in British waters six to 12 nautical miles from the coast if they can prove they accessed those areas between 2012 and 2016.
The French are pushing for a new licensing regime that would approve skippers rather than boats, according to The Telegraph.
The dispute between Britain and France centres on waters around the Channel Islands. Jersey is said to be open to adopting a more flexible licensing regime.
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Another source suggested that the government would look to find ways to help fishermen who had replaced their boats since the period when they had to prove that their vessels had historically fished in UK waters. Under the Brexit deal, EU boats that can show they have fished in British waters in at least four years from 2012 to 2016 are eligible for a licence.
Some 1,831 applications for licences have been received, and 1,793 issued. The main contention has been over smaller vessels, the under 12-metre category, fishing between six and 12 nautical miles offshore, where 50 applications have been received, all from French vessels, but only 19 issued.
“What we are seeing is applications for licences that don’t have sufficient supporting evidence,” the source said. “The overwhelming majority of the boats fishing in the 6-12 mile zone are French so it’s a logical consequence that most of the problems are going to be with French vessels. That doesn’t mean there’s any particular targeting of France. It’s a function of geography.”
They added that the British side had been “encouraged” by the Commission’s reluctance to support the French retaliation. “We made clear they would be a breach of the trade and co-operation agreement.”
Frost is due to meet Maros Sefcovic, the European Commission vice-president for inter-institutional relations, in Brussels tomorrow.
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He also discussed the Northern Ireland protocol with Beaune.
What is the row about?
The issue is how many French boats are allowed to catch fish between six to 12 miles off the coast of the UK.
Under the terms of the Brexit deal, the two sides agreed that French trawlermen who had traditionally fished in this zone — and could prove it — would be allowed to continue.
In September the UK announced the criteria under which French boats could prove this historic link.
Only boats that can confirm they fished in the area in every year between 2012 and 2016 are eligible for a licence.
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They have to provide positional data showing they were there at the relevant time, and landing data of their catches to show they were fishing. The French government claims these rules are unreasonable and in breach of the Brexit deal. The UK rejects this.
What retaliatory measures are the French threatening?
France suggested it could increase customs checks on all lorries arriving from and leaving for the UK, threatening long delays at ports such as Calais.
It said this would involve “systematic customs and sanitary inspections on imported products arriving in Channel ports”, and that there would also be a ban on “disembarking seafood products”.
The French are understood to also be considering increasing the price of Jersey’s electricity.
Has the threat now been withdrawn?
No, but on Monday President Macron said he was suspending the measures to allow time for talks to resolve the issue. Yesterday, the French Europe minister, Clément Beaune, met Lord Frost to discuss the situation. No substantive progress was made. They are due to talk again next week.
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Will the UK back down?
The government insists not. It is prepared to licence any French vessel as long as it can prove it has the right to fish in UK waters.
Will France back down?
It appears that the French are looking for a way out. The European Commission has been reluctant to row in behind France while legal advice received by the government says that they are acting within the terms of the Brexit deal. The question is whether a face-saving compromise can be found to allow them to walk back from their threats.
