Bottom trawling is destructive to the seabed (Image: Getty)
Sir Keir Starmer has been urged to make the most of the UK’s Brexit freedoms by banning "destructive" bottom trawling.
The Prime Minister, who is hoping to reset relations with the European Union, is facing renewed pressure to protect Britain’s fishing industry and marine protected areas by shutting out EU vessels.
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Hugo Tagholm, executive director of Oceana UK, said: "As an independent coastal state post-Brexit, the UK should be using its powers to safeguard our seas for wildlife and communities.
"This includes freeing all our marine protected areas, in their entirety, from destructive bottom trawling, and standing up to industrial fisheries lobby groups at home and abroad who are seeking to challenge positive progress."
Campaigners blasted the Government for failing to ban foreign vessels from highly destructive bottom trawling in the UK’s marine sanctuaries despite Labour’s election pledge.
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They said the Government's pre-ballot promise of a blanket ban appears to have “evaporated” and been replaced with “weaker words and worrying delays”.
Bottom trawling involves dragging heavy nets across the seabed, which destroys the natural seafloor habitat.
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Mr Tagholm said: “It beggars belief that we are still waiting for this government to ban highly destructive bottom trawl fishing in our marine ‘protected’ areas.
“The clarity of the Labour Party pre-election promises to ban bottom trawling in marine sanctuaries appears to have evaporated, to be replaced with weaker words and worrying delays. In a time of nature and climate crises, this simply isn’t good enough.
“If this government wants thriving marine wildlife and flourishing coastal communities, it needs to act. We need to protect and grow our natural resources – safeguarding our marine protected areas will both boost fish populations and support coastal economies.”
Just 6% of the total 33,000-plus hours of suspected bottom trawling in Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) in 2023 was carried out by UK vessels.
A current ban on bottom trawling covers British as well as EU vessels, and applies to 13 MPAs, covering 4,000sq km.
But the UK has not yet implemented a blanket ban on bottom trawling
Emma Hardy, the minister for water and flooding, made a speech at the Coastal Futures conference where she said: “We will be making progress on [managing fisheries in our MPAs], consulting thoroughly, engaging all of you here and including our important fishing industry and avoiding blanket bans.”
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But this is in stark contrast to lines taken by the Labour Party before being elected, when Environment Secretary Steve Reed tweeted that “Labour will stop destructive bottom trawling destroying ocean ecosystems”.
Ms Hardy also announced a “review of the MPA network” but campaigners said it is unclear what this will entail.
In a letter to Mr Reed, marine academics said: “MPAs should act as havens supporting thriving wildlife, sustainable livelihoods and greater resilience to climate change.
Yet, while the UK has designated more than 30% of its domestic waters as MPAs, almost all of these are currently little more than lines on a map, since they remain open to highly destructive bottom trawling and dredging.
“These fishing practices are simply not compatible with meaningful marine protection: they are extremely intensive and unselective, involving the dragging of heavy nets across the seabed, which scoop up almost all life in their path. Just a single brief pass of bottom-contact fishing gear has been shown to reduce species richness of seabed invertebrates by 19% and diversity by 26%, while recovery would take many years.”
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A spokesman for the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said: “For too long precious species and habitats in our oceans have been under threat and we are committed to banning destructive bottom trawling where it is damaging our protected seabed habitats.
“We will deliver on our commitment to protect 30% of our oceans by 2030, ratify a new Global Oceans Treaty and are carefully considering the next steps for protecting our MAPs.”