France’s EU affairs minister, Clément Beaune, has said Paris will “now use the language of force” in an escalation of a row over post-Brexit fishing rights, as French maritime police seized a British trawler found in its territorial waters without a licence.
One vessel had been stopped off Le Havre in the early hours of Thursday morning, after which it was rerouted to the quay and “handed over to the judicial authority”, while a second was given a verbal warning.
In a statement, the French government said the checks during the scallop fishing season had been routine but admitted they were conducted “in the context of the discussion on licences with the United Kingdom and the European Commission”. » | Daniel Boffey in Brussels, Angelique Chrisafis in Paris, Peter Walker and Dan Sabbagh | Thursday, October 28, 2021
Pêche : Paris «ouvert aux discussions» si Londres «respecte ses engagements», déclare Castex : La France a annoncé mercredi des mesures de rétorsion sur les licences de pêche post-Brexit. »
