Sheryll Murray, MP for South East Cornwall, today called on Richard Benyon MP, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs with responsibility for Fishing to reflect cod increase in quota allocation for Looe Fishermen.
Sheryll Murray has learned today that the Looe Gill Netters are having to throw back hundreds of kilos of Cod because of restrictions imposed on the amount they can land despite an increase of 150% of available cod which was secured by the tremendous efforts on the part of Richard Benyon at the December Council of Ministers.
Sheryll commented, “I am pleased to see the MMO undertaking to include under 10m fishermen in the monthly quota setting process and would like to bring the following advertisement to all under 10m fishermen. The seasonality of the cod fishery in Area VIIe, which covers the South West, has been long known and I raised the matter in 2007, when under the previous Government, the tiny under 10m cod quota was set to expire by March of that year.
“I have sent an urgent message to the Minister today asking that an increase in the January Cod Quota is introduced.
“The EU Total Allowable Catch in the waters of the coast of Looe has increased from 4.023* tonnes in 2011 to 10,059* tonnes for 2012 and this should provide an adequate pool to increase the monthly allocation for the under 10m fleet.”
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Notes
*data from Seafish summary 2012.
Marine Management Organisation (MMO) Monthly consultation
The MMO are looking for assistance in managing the quota for the under 10 metre fleet and non-sector, in order to make the process of setting catch limits more open and transparent. The MMO would welcome any comments, suggestions or any information you believe to be relevant when we are setting catch limits that will improve our understanding of what is happening around the coast. This may include any local factors of particular importance to fishing communities. Please send any information to catchlimits@marinemanagement.org.uk before the 15th of each month.
Contact: Sheryll Murray MP’s office on 01579 344428.