Wales Bill

Lord Deben Excerpts

Committee: 3rd sitting (Hansard): House of Lords
Tuesday 15th November 2016 Lords Chamber

[Lord Deben (Con)]

As the longest serving Fisheries Minister—the longest serving in history, I think—and with my Welsh connections, I warn the Minister that it would be a good idea to do as is suggested by the amendment but also to be extremely careful. The fisheries issue is going to be one of the most difficult that we face, because the fishing industry has been misled into believing that if you remove yourself from the common fisheries policy you are somehow perfectly free to do what you like. In fact, almost every fishery that we have is a common fishery with one other European nation, if not more. We are therefore going to have to deal with these things on a common fisheries policy basis anyway. It is thus crucial that our structure internally provides no possibility of any misunderstanding. I rather like this amendment because it removes what would otherwise be a misunderstanding.

I hope that the Minister will understand and perhaps mention to his fellow Ministers that this is a long and hard row to hoe, if you can hoe rows in the sea. We will have to learn that we still have to live with each other even outside the European Union. Whatever you think about the policy, it is going to have to be common because there will be no other way of doing it. Therefore, getting it right internally will be crucial if we are to get it right externally, assuming that we continue with this disastrous policy.

[Lord Crickhowell (Con)]

My Lords, I plead total ignorance of the licensing regime. Are we satisfied that whoever is in charge of it, the fishing boats are actually going to be Welsh? I ask only because I seem to recall that long ago, when I was the Member of Parliament for Pembroke, Spanish fishing boats registered in the port of Milford Haven and somehow avoided the licensing regime. The licensing regime may now have dealt with that effectively but I should like confirmation that that is so.