The Angling Trust has stepped up its bid to enforce the unilateral protection of British bass stocks and accused the UK government of failing to secure an agreement to protect bass at the European Fisheries Council meeting.
To make matters worse, the trust said, Ministers have claimed to have secured a “fair deal for fisheries”, despite the fact that they have failed to take on any of the measures in response to the International Council for the Exploration of the Seas’ (ICES) recent call for an immediate 80% reduction in bass landings in order to avoid a total stock collapse.
It now wants an urgent meeting with the UK Fisheries Minister George Eustice to discuss a timescale for the introduction of national bass conservation measures including introducing domestic measures on bass minimum landing sizes, more nursery areas and increased protection for estuaries.
