U.K. Environment Secretary ‘Optimistic’ EU Fishing Deal Will Be Reached

(Bloomberg) --

U.K. Environment Secretary George Eustice said he is “optimistic” Britain and the European Union will reach an agreement on fishing rights by July 1, removing a key obstacle to a wider trade deal with the bloc.

Speaking to a committee of lawmakers in London on Wednesday, Eustice said the rights of EU boats to fish in U.K. waters will be reduced after Brexit. Future access will be subject to annual negotiations -- but, in what would be an olive branch to the EU, he signaled the government may be prepared to sign agreements spanning several years.

“Controlling access to our waters is a very powerful card,” Eustice said. “We will play that strong hand in a gracious, diplomatic fashion.”

The comments are a sign the U.K. may be trying to de-escalate one of the most contentious issues in negotiations with the EU over the post-Brexit relationship. Brussels has made any trade deal conditional on the two sides reaching an accord on fish. The U.K. argues the current system is unfair because it allows EU to boats catch more fish in British waters than domestic vessels.

Eustice said the U.K. won't trade away its fishing rights for a wider trade deal. “They are very separate,” he told the House of Lords EU Energy and Environment Sub-Committee. “How we manage a fisheries resource in a shared way is a matter for a fisheries agreement. There really isn't a precedent of linking a trade deal with sacrificing your rights as an independent coastal state.”

While EU member states such as France, Ireland and the Netherlands depend on access to British waters, Eustice said it would be “a big ask” of other countries like Italy that aren't so reliant to jeopardize a trade deal over fish.

To contact the reporter on this story: Edward Evans in London at eevans3@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Tim Ross at tross54@bloomberg.net, Stuart Biggs, Thomas Penny

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