Devolved management of fish quotas in the United Kingdom: producers' organizations and individual quota systems

Research PaperAs a Member State of the European Community (EC), the United Kingdom's marine capture fisheries must be managed within the framework of the Community's common fisheries policy (see Box 1). Since 1983 this has included a system of annual total allowable catches (TACs) for most commercially important stocks within the zone of extended fisheries jurisdiction created by the 200-mile limits of all the EC Member States with coastlines bordering the North East Atlantic and adjacent seas. The TACs are divided into national catch quotas according to an established allocation mechanism which gives each Member State a fixed percentage share each year (although a number of international quota swaps are regularly undertaken). While the national fishing fleets are subject to certain common input controls under the common fisheries policy (in particular technical conservation measures such as minimum mesh sizes) each Member State is free to determine the means for allocating its quotas and for regulating quota uptake. EC rules do, however, require all vessels of 10 metres or over in length to keep a logbook of their activities which must include details of the quantities of TAC species caught and retained on board and the time and location of capture. Inshore vessels of less than 10 metres long are not obliged to carry logbooks but Member States are still required to monitor their landings to ensure that national quota limits are respected. Figure 1 shows the sea areas surrounding the United Kingdom according to the ICES nomenclature used to denominate fish stocks in the North East Atlantic. The main areas, within which United Kingdom vessels are active, are the North Sea (Area IV), West of Scotland and Rockall (Area VI), the Irish Sea (Area VIIa), the English Channel (Areas VIId and VIIe), the Bristol Channel and South East of Ireland (Areas VIIf and VIIg) and Western Waters (Areas VIIh-k). The main stocks in these waters subject to TACs are listed in Tables 3 and 4