Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 16 June 2022 to Question 13027 on Fisheries: Quotas, if he will make it his policy to (a) follow the advice published in June 2022 by the International Council for the Exploration of the Seas, in full and for all stocks, when (i) setting quotas and (ii) negotiating with the relevant countries in 2022 and (b) where that advice is not followed, publish the scientific advice he plans to follow instead.

The UK’s approach to negotiating total allowable catches (TACs) is founded on the best available scientific evidence. Once agreed, TACs and quota shares reflect negotiated outcomes that balance the objectives set out in the Fisheries Act 2020, including the needs of our fishing industry and the long-term sustainability of our fisheries and fish stocks.