Exclusive: French lawmakers want hard line in Brexit fishing talks

[June 11, 2020]  By Michel Rose

PARIS (Reuters) - French lawmakers have urged the government to stay firm over fishing in Brexit negotiations, potentially complicating EU negotiator Michel Barnier's ability to compromise with Britain.

Seabirds follow a fishing boat as the fisherman throw waste from the catch into the sea off the coast of Worthing, Britain May 28 2018. REUTERS/Russell Boyce/File Photo

In a report approved by the National Assembly's European affairs committee on Thursday, lawmakers urged President Emmanuel Macron's government to keep French fishermen's right to fish in British waters.

"The Union must continue to guarantee that fishing won't be sacrificed to save other sectors," the report seen by Reuters says. The report was co-written by Jean-Pierre Pont, a member of parliament for Macron's party who represents the town of Boulogne on the English Channel, France's busiest fishing port.

Britain's government has said it want to have full control over its waters and fish in its future outside the European Union.

EU diplomats had told Reuters last month the EU was willing to shift its stance on fisheries and move from the "maximalist position" of maintaining the situation as it is in order to help forge a trade deal with Britain.

Lawmakers also urged Paris to do more to prepare for a no-deal, which they said was the "most likely scenario".

British fishing grounds are among the richest in the North East Atlantic zone where most of the EU catch is hauled in.

(Reporting by Michel Rose; Editing by Andrew Heavens)

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