France impounds UK vessel accused of unlawful fishing

A British fishing vessel has been impounded via the French government, accused of illegally fishing of their waters.

It used to be seized within the English Channel and is being held on the port of Boulogne, not able to go away whilst the French government believe bringing a prosecution.

The vessel used to be stopped at sea via the French Navy on Thursday night time, with its group imagined to were fishing in French waters with no licence.

The incident comes days after Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer used to be criticised via British fishermen over his reset care for the European Union, which supplies EU fishing vessels get entry to to UK waters for 12 extra years.

The Foreign Office mentioned it used to be providing fortify to a British nationwide in France and used to be involved with native government.

“As the vessel remains subject to an ongoing investigation by French fisheries authorities, we are unable to comment further at this time,” a central authority spokesperson added.

According to the French Coastguard, the military patrol vessel Pluvier used to be carrying out inspections of their waters in a single day on 23 May, discovering the British vessel to were allegedly working with no licence.

The fishing vessel used to be diverted to Boulogne “for the purpose of initiating prosecution”.

The Conservatives accused the French government of “shameful double standards” over the arrest.

Shadow house secretary Chris Philp mentioned they’d failed to forestall 1000’s of migrants crossing the Channel in small boats, accusing France of “taking no action whatsoever at sea and often ushering the illegal immigrants into UK waters”.

“Yet when a UK fishing vessel is in French waters all of a sudden they are magically able to act. If the French can now intercept boats then they should start stopping the boats with illegal immigrants – as international law obliges them to do.”

The UK and the EU have struck a deal that covers fishing, business, defence, power and strengthening ties in a variety of coverage spaces nonetheless up for negotiation.

A key a part of the deal comes to giving European fishing boats an additional 12 years of get entry to to British waters in alternate for alleviating some business frictions.

Critics from the Conservatives and Reform UK described the deal as a “surrender” to the EU, whilst the Liberal Democrats mentioned the federal government had taken some “positive first steps” to rebuilding ties with Europe.