2021 Jersey dispute

Jersey considered the dispute to remain a live issue and were awaiting any formal complaint that France may lodge with the European Commission.

[14] Speaking in the French Senate on 5 May 2021, Sénatrice Béatrice Gosselin said "I can see Jersey chimneys from home, we all are 'anglo-normands' ... Our lives are linked to each other, it's been the case for centuries.

We have to take those very particular conditions into account, the life between Jersey and the Manche coast has always existed and we need to put that at the forefront and work hard to find solutions that are fair for everyone.

The Agreement Between The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and The French Republic Concerning Fishing In The Bay of Granville was signed on 4 July 2000 by Michael Wilkes, Lieutenant Governor of Jersey on behalf of the Crown and Daniel Bernard, French ambassador on behalf of France,[20] but its implementation would require changes to the legislation in both Jersey and France.

[25] Three days earlier, Jersey formally agreed to be included in the deal, ensuring that it could continue to trade with Europe without tariffs.

[29] The president of the Jersey Fishermen's Association stated during the protest that "It's all about the marine environment and taking care of it and looking after it for future generations."

This was intended to enable EU fishermen to gather and submit the necessary evidence of their historic fishing activities in Jersey waters.

[38] When the fishermen received their licences via email there was surprise that they came with conditions, some of which were specific to their boat, including: However, Jersey later suspended these extra conditions and also allowed for additional types of positional data to be accepted as evidence of historical fishing in addition to VMS such as AIS, logbooks, chart plotters and other written information, as well as GPS.

[48] A similar licensing regime exists for Jersey boats that wanted to continue to fish in Guernsey’s territorial waters.

[56] In an interview with France Bleu, Jersey politician Deputy Gregory Guida, a Frenchman by nationality, said "what we received was of very poor quality.

The French administration sent us horrors: missing or duplicated documents of boats with just the minimum 10 days to issue licences without additional information to determine the importance of their annual activity in our waters.

"[56] Normandy politician Sénatrice Gosselin told the fishermen that the missing documents may have been lost somewhere between the committee that checks that the information is complete, the Direction des pêches maritimes et de l'aquaculture (DPMA), the Minister of the Sea and Brussels.

[59] Norman and Breton fishermen met in Granville on 3 May, with some intent on blockading the port of Saint Helier on 6 May in protest at the system.

[60][61] In the evening of the 5 May, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said "any blockade would be completely unjustified" and announced that the Royal Navy would send two patrol vessels to monitor the waters around Jersey as a precautionary measure.

[64] Between 50 and 60 French fishing boats including trawlers and smaller craft entered the Saint Helier Harbour area, remaining outside the pierheads and for a time obstructing the freight ferry MV Commodore Goodwill from leaving her berth.

[76] In August, another French trawler was accused of illegally fishing 1.2 tonnes of protected bluefin tuna in Jersey's territorial waters.

Jersey boats registered with North East Atlantic Fisheries Commission can land crustaceans and fin fish they have caught, as these species are exempt from the EU sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) requirements for an Export Health Certificate.

[79] The day after the 6 May protest, a Jersey fishing boat was prevented from landing its catch of cuttlefish in Carteret by French fishermen who lined the quay.

[85] At midday on 18 September, between 100 and 150 fishermen, their families and officials gathered on Armanville beach, Pirou to highlight the licensing issue and put pressure on the Jersey authorities.

[89] On 3 May, the Normandy region and the Manche department closed their combined offices in Jersey, which were set up in 1995, to protest their discontent and lack of understanding.

[95] The UK Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs George Eustice called the threat to shut down electricity to Jersey "disproportionate and unacceptable".

It includes a 'permissive extent clause' that would enable the Government of the United Kingdom by an Order in Council to extend the provisions of the Act to cover the Crown Dependencies to bring them into line with the UK's international obligations.

[98][99] It was reported that the UK intended to cede Jersey's territorial waters as a bargaining chip in order to secure a better deal with the EU.

During the discussions on the day of the protest, the Government of Jersey committed to setting up a telephone number which the French fishermen could use to speak directly with fluent French-speaking staff in its marine resources team as an addition to the formal diplomatic channels.

[102] Jersey extended the time that boats over 12 metres (39 ft) had to provide additional evidence of their historic fishing activities in the area until 1 July.

[106] On 6 September, French prime minister Jean Castex wrote to President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen that there was a lack of "political will" to resolve the dispute, and called for a consultative body to be established, similar to those in place under the Granville Bay agreement.

[107] On 7 September, Senator Gorst informed the House of Commons Justice Select Committee that the TCA made clear that it was up to Jersey to issue the licences, that there was no automatic transition from the previous treaty, and that the Island's government wanted to work through the technical details and data to respect the historic fishing rights of the French but "no more and no less".

[51] The 'nature and extent' part of the licensing agreement that covers which species of fish each boat can catch, where and in what quantity remains under discussion as of December 2022, together with the rules on replacement vessels.

Jersey's new Environment Minister, Deputy Jonathan Renouf was seeking approval for a change in the regulations so that there is more flexibility in how similar a replacement fishing boat needs to be to the old one.

[108] A €60m EU-funded compensation scheme is intended to provide individual support to fishers that failed to be granted a licence, or to enable them to exit the profession.