Boris insists UK will make NO concessions to France in fishing war

Boris insists UK will make NO concessions to France in fishing war – after Macron backed down from threat of sanctions and vowed to reopen negotiations before fleeing COP after one day

  • The PM was adamant tonight the UK’s position has not changed in the dispute
  • It surrounds the number of fishing licences granted to small French vessels
  • Emmanuel Macron threatened retaliatory measures before an 11th hour U-turn 

Boris Johnson insists the UK will make no concessions to France in the post-Brexit fishing war.

The Prime Minister was adamant his position had not changed in the dispute, which surrounds the number of fishing licences granted to small French vessels since the UK left the EU.

He said the UK would continue to work to resolve the disagreement, which led to France threatening action against British boats before Paris backed down on Monday night. 

French President Emmanuel Macron vowed to reopen negotiations but fled the Cop26 summit earlier this week after just one day. 

Mr Johnson said: ‘Since you ask about whether the UK has changed its position on the fishing issue, the answer is no.

‘We are working very, very closely with our French friends and partners on the things that matter most to the people of the world and that is tackling climate change and reducing CO2.

‘And by comparison with that hugely important issue the ones you mention [fishing] are really vanishingly unimportant.’

The comments follow Mr Macron’s eleventh hour U-turn, in which he called off retaliatory measures against Britain, which were previously threatened over, among other issues, British trawlers docking in French ports.  

He declared discussions between France, the UK and the European Commission would ‘continue tomorrow’ and ruled out any retaliation against Britain ‘while we’re negotiating’. 

Fisherman Phil Channing unloads his catch of scallops at the harbour in St Helier, Jersey, from his boat amid the ongoing fishing row between the UK and France

The French president had warned that Paris could block British boats from landing their catches in French ports and tighten customs checks from midnight in protest at what they claim is a refusal by the UK authorities to grant licences to French boats.

France alleges Britain is not honouring a post-Brexit deal on access to British fishing grounds, and said that from midnight on Monday it would retaliate by stepping up checks on trucks coming from Britain and barring British trawlers from docking in French ports.

But the UK insisted it would only grant licences to boats which meet the criteria set out in the Brexit deal.

Earlier, Britain welcomed France having ‘stepped back’ from threats to impose punitive action in the row.

Environment Secretary George Eustice said a meeting between Brexit minister Lord Frost and France’s Europe minister Clement Beaune in Paris on Thursday would be ‘very important’, as further talks with the EU are also scheduled.

But ahead of that meeting, the skipper of a Scottish-registered scallop dredger, the Cornelis Gert Jan, which had been held in Le Havre, is due to appear in a French court on Wednesday.

Earlier, Downing Street was forced to clarify a suggestion by Mr Eustice that the British vessel had been released, after it emerged that it remains in Le Havre.

Mr Macron previously warned that Paris could block British boats from landing their catches in French ports and tighten customs checks in protest at what they claim is a refusal by the UK authorities to grant licences to French boats.

But France suspended the threats at the 11th hour as negotiations continued.

The Associated Press reported that the deadline for action had now been extended to Thursday.

An official with the French presidency told the news agency on Tuesday that discussions ‘are advancing’ and that France hopes to ‘move forward’ from the fishing dispute to focus on bigger issues such as climate change.

‘Neither us nor the British want this to go badly,’ said the official, who AP was not authorised to name publicly.

Boris Johnson insists he will offer no concessions to France as the row over post-Brexit fishing rights rumbles on

The comments follow French President Emmanuel Macron’s eleventh hour U-turn, in which he called off retaliatory measures against Britain, which were previously threatened over, among other issues, British trawlers docking in French ports

Earlier, Mr Eustice told Sky News: ‘We welcome the fact France has stepped back from the threats it was making last Wednesday.

‘We’ve always said we want to de-escalate this and always said we have an ever-open door to discuss any further evidence France or the EU might have on any additional vessels they’d like to have licensed.

‘France has clearly taken a decision not to implement some of the decisions they threatened last Wednesday, we very much welcome that, but I think there’s going to be a very important meeting on Thursday between Lord Frost and his opposite number, not just on fisheries but a wider range of issues as well.’

Mr Eustice told broadcasters he understood the Cornelis Gert Jan ‘has now been released’ following ‘administrative confusion’ related to a change in the vessel’s engine.

However, officials later acknowledged it remained subject to detention by French authorities.

Macduff Shellfish, the owner of the boat, was under the impression it would remain at Le Havre until at least after the hearing scheduled in Rouen on Wednesday.

The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: ‘The vessel concerned remains in port, having been detained by the French authorities.’

The European Union said that talks convened with officials from France, the UK, Jersey and Guernsey would continue on Tuesday.

On Monday night, just hours ahead of the deadline set by Paris, the French president was reported to have told journalists at the Cop26 summit in Glasgow: ‘Since this afternoon, discussions have resumed on the basis of a proposal I made to Prime Minister (Boris) Johnson.

‘The talks need to continue. My understanding is that the British were going to come back to us tomorrow with other proposals. All that will be worked on.

‘We’ll see where we are tomorrow at the end of the day, to see if things have really changed.

‘My wish is that we can find a way out on all these issues.’

The UK has granted licences to 98% of EU vessels that have requested permission to operate in British waters.

But the dispute centres on access for small boats of under 12 metres wishing to fish in the UK six-to-12 nautical mile zone.

The government in Paris was angry that the UK originally granted only 12 licences out of 47 applications for smaller vessels, a figure that has now risen to 18.

Only boats that can demonstrate they have fished in UK waters for one day in each of the years between 2012 and 2016 qualify for a licence.

On Tuesday, Mr Johnson said the UK Government’s position over the fishing row had not changed, when asked whether he had offered more generous terms to President Macron in order to keep talks alive.

Le Big Sulk? Emmanuel Macron departs COP26 summit in Glasgow a day before other leaders – after bitter spats with Boris Johnson and Australian PM Scott Morrison over AUKUS sub deal

Emmanuel Macron departed the COP26 summit in Glasgow after just a day – leaving fellow leaders to fight on for climate change commitments.

The French President is believed to have flown back to Paris last night after a handful of engagements – missing the ‘family photo’ with dozens of other premiers including Joe Biden, Boris Johnson, Angela Merkel and Justin Trudeau.

The quick departure came after awkward encounters with Mr Johnson over the bitter fishing rights row, with the French seemingly backing down amid claims the EU had refused to support their tough line. 

There was also a distinctly uncomfortable atmosphere with Australian PM Scott Morrison, whom the president publicly called a liar for his role in the AUKUS submarine alliance. 

It is thought that Mr Macron’s plan was always to head back to Paris after the first day of the summit. He was also at the G20 gathering in Rome over the weekend. 

However, it could raise eyebrows as Mr Johnson, Mr Biden and others were still in full deal-making mode today. 

After the two-day leaders’ element of the summit, COP26 will continue until the end of next week in the hope of securing progress against climate change. 

Mr Macron’s early departure came as Mr Johnson insisted the row over fishing rights is ‘vanishingly unimportant’ when compared to other issues like climate change. 

The Prime Minister also insisted that the UK had not given any ground during negotiations about the dispute. 

He told a press conference this evening: ‘On our relations with France, I really renew what I have said before, we are working very, very closely with our French friends and partners on the things that matter most to the people of the world, that is tackling climate change, reducing CO2 and by comparison with that hugely important issue, the ones you mention are really vanishingly unimportant.

‘But since you ask about whether the UK has changed its position, let me put it that way, on the fishing issue, the answer is no.’ 

World leaders posed for a group photo during a lavish evening reception to mark the opening day of the COP26 summit in Glasgow, but Emmanuel Macron was nowhere to be seen

Boris Johnson and Emmanuel Macron had a frosty standoff in Glasgow on Monday morning as the PM welcomed the French President to the COP26 climate change summit amid a furious Anglo-French row over fishing rights

The world leaders capped off the first day of the conference with a lavish royal reception at Glasgow’s Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum with Prince Charles, Prince William, Kate Middleton and the Duchess of Cornwall all in attendance.

But Macron was not in any pictures of the event.   

Mr Macron confirmed just hours before the evening reception that France would not go ahead with retaliatory measures against Britain amid the two nations’ bitter dispute over post-Brexit fishing rights. 

He declared discussions between France, the UK and the European Commission would ‘continue tomorrow’ and ruled out any retaliation against Britain ‘while we’re negotiating’.  

The dropping of the deadline came shortly after Mr Macron came face to face with Australian PM Scott Morrison at the COP26 event, whom he publicly called a liar for his role in the submarine row. 

When asked by reporters at the climate summit whether Mr Morrison lied to him before tearing up a $90billion submarine contract and doing a deal with the US and UK, Mr Macron replied: ‘I don’t think, I know.’   

Boris Johnson greets Australia’s Scott Morrison at COP26 UN Climate Change yesterday

An awkward handshake in Rome between Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison (right) and French President Emmanuel Macron (left) took place when the pair met in Rome last week

Macron was even pictured sharing a joke with Prince Charles just hours earlier on Monday, but has seemingly disappeared and did not show his face at the royal reception

At the start of the evening the Queen urged world leaders to ‘earn a place in history’ and ‘answer the call of those future generations’ in an impassioned speech to representatives.

Her Majesty, 95, who was forced to miss the conference after her overnight stay in hospital last month, told leaders via video ‘to rise above the politics of the moment, and achieve true statesmanship’

After the monarch’s powerful speech, the Prime Minister said: ‘What we’ve got today, as Her Majesty alluded to, is the biggest gathering of world leaders in this country since the foundation of the UN at the end of the Second World War, and it’s quite an extraordinary historic event.  

‘But in a way, what we are doing today, is even more important, because we face nothing less than a mortal threat to our planet and to our civilisation, to our way of life.’

France today denied a seized British trawler has been freed as ministers hailed Emmanuel Macron ‘stepping back’ from his retaliation threats in the bitter fishing row. 

Environment Secretary George Eustice claimed the scallop vessel Cornelis Gert Jan ‘has now been released’ after being accused of fishing without a licence and detained at Le Havre. 

But the vessel is still at the Normandy port and French prosecutors insist the situation remains ‘subject to legal negotiations’ – with a deposit of around £125,000 due before she can return home. 

The confusion came after Mr Macron said he would go back to the negotiating table with Britain rather than follow through on his extraordinary sabre-rattling.

He has shelved threats to block British trawlers from landing their catches in French ports, reduce electricity to Jersey and tighten customs checks until at least Thursday.

But despite the lull in hostilities, French fishing chiefs have warned trawlermen to stay away from British waters in case the spat blows up again.

Mr Eustice told Sky News this morning: ‘We welcome the fact France has stepped back from the threats it was making last Wednesday.

‘We’ve always said we want to de-escalate this and always said we have an ever-open door to discuss any further evidence France or the EU might have on any additional vessels they’d like to have licensed.

‘France has clearly taken a decision not to implement some of the decisions they threatened last Wednesday, we very much welcome that but I think there’s going to be a very important meeting on Thursday between Lord frost and his opposite number, not just on fisheries but a wider range of issues as well.’  

Jondy Ward, skipper of the Cornelis Gert Jan, is pictured aboard the vessel in the port of Le Havre today

Environment Secretary George Eustice said the scallop vessel ‘has now been released’ after being accused of fishing without a licence and detained at Le Havre

On the situation with the Cornelis, Mr Eustice said: ‘I understand that vessel has now been released and I think there’s going to need to be some further discussions, clearly there was an administrative error at some point. 

‘We haven’t quite got to the bottom of that but that vessel I understand has been released.’ 

On the surface the UK had refused to budge in the dispute over fishing rights, with Foreign Secretary Liz Truss adamant Britain would ‘not roll over’.

However, there have been gradually more being granted, with UK authorities insisting more evidence has been supplied that they used waters before Brexit.

Mr Macron told reporters at the Cop26 summit in Glasgow last night: ‘It is not while we are negotiating that we are going to impose sanctions. 

‘Since this afternoon, discussions have resumed on the basis of a proposal I made to Prime Minister Johnson.

‘The talks need to continue. We’ll see where we are tomorrow at the end of the day, to see if things have really changed. The next few hours are important hours.’ He added: ‘I understood that the British were going to come back to us tomorrow with other proposals.’

France’s Europe minister, Clement Beaune, tweeted late last night that he would hold talks with Brexit minister Lord Frost on Thursday in Paris. 

The close ally of Macron said any planned retaliatory measures would ‘not be applied before this meeting’. 

France is furious at the UK and Jersey’s decision to turn down applications from a number of French vessels to fish in their waters.

The Elysee Palace had originally stood firm, saying that if Britain refused to give ground on the number of licences it issued to French fishermen, it would implement its threats to British trawlers, to Jersey and on customs checks.

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