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Name: Jack Bailey
Dear Scrutiny Review Panel,
I have been around the Jersey fishing fleet all my life due to my family being Fishermen in Jersey.
I have been skippering a 10meter fishing vessel from since 2016 from St.Helier, fishing the southern outline reefs and as far out as the twelve mile limit if I was to buy this boat the license would cost me a minimum of £90,000, meanwhile the french fishermen who are fishing within our waters have a permit scheme from the Jersey government to support them, why can't we? There is no support for the Jersey Fishermen and yet they wonder why the fleet is depleting.
In my time skippering a fishing vessel I have fished alongside many french boats who can be double the size meaning double the catch and double the damage done to our waters as they are able to fish all weathers and do not ever rest the waters as our fleet do due to the fact if the weather is too bad none of the Jersey fleet will be out but the french fisherman are able to.
With trying to land to France at the moment we have to fill in double the paperwork meanwhile the french vessels can fish alongside me in non EU waters and do not have to fill in any paperwork. The current agreement with France is not sustainable in the long run, they have far larger boats and the Jersey fishing fleet is being under supported and pushed out by them in our own waters. The Jersey market is simply not large enough to take on the quota of what is caught meaning that we require access to the uk and french market but now we are unable to. How is anyone expected to earn a living if there is no where to sell what is caught?
We need to act now while we still can rather than accept what appears to be a rushed agreement. If we continue with what is currently on the table, Jersey waters will have a depleted stock and there will be no Jersey fisherman left to supply the island and support their families.
I believe that the 3 mile limit should be extended to 6 miles with protection over the minquiers, by doing this it should save Jersey waters and help with the survival of our sea life and the survival of the Jersey fishing fleet.
It is imperative that we act quickly, with 57 french fishing vessels being supplied with free permits and even more on the list to apply there will simply be no more future for the Jersey Fisherman, it is already hard enough at the moment and by having zero support like the EU fisherman have from their government and our government there may be no way to come back if this agreement continues for much longer.
Jack Bailey
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