Inaction from DEFRA as legal challenge of loopholes in the commercial bass byelaws extends into the new netting season
Having been issued with a legal challenge over commercial bass-netting byelaws in August, DEFRA has still not responded.
Photo: Shutterstock/Jesus Cobaleda
Fish Legal’s challenge to DEFRA over the North-Eastern Inshore Fisheries Conservation Authority (NEIFCA) issuing of net licences has been met with little response. Triggered by the number of shore nets and bass-catch data from the north-east fishery area over the period from October 2021 to April 2022, Fish Legal learned that despite national law only allowing five nets to operate, a NEIFCA byelaw allows each netter to use three nets, but NEIFCA argues that these are simply three sections of one net.
The law only allows bass to be landed as bycatch, and not as a target species. However, monthly catch data showed that bass was never less than 74% of the total catch in any month; and in four of those months bass was between 90% and 100% of the total catch. One permit holder caught nothing but bass.
“Bass is evidently the key catch from this fishery, and it is therefore not credible to argue that bass is bycatch. If a net is set in areas where little but bass is being caught, the obvious likelihood is that you would catch bass” explained Fish Legal solicitor, Justin Neal. He said that NEIFCA seemed “to be little more than a device to get around the national law restrictions and allow more netting to take place” and he could not see it rewriting the byelaw to bring it into line with national law
Fish Legal then asked DEFRA to intervene, and send a message that Inshore Fisheries Conservation Authorities are required to uphold the law, and it is not acceptable to allow shore netters to flout it.
This was issued in early August, requiring DEFRA to respond within 21 days, with a full and clear response on how it intends to deal with the current legal breaches by NEIFCA.
After the 21 days, DEFRA’s response was not one of urgency: “…owing to the August holiday period, are now unlikely to be in a position to respond substantively to your letter until September although will respond sooner if possible.”
Over a month later, in early October, DEFRA indicated that it would be getting back to Fish Legal within the next couple of weeks. Fish Legal’s urgent concern is that the commercial bass fishery re-opened on October 1.