Faced with the negotiations which got bogged down, the French fishermen took action.
A national movement will be led in the coming days to protest against the British refusal to grant fishing licenses to French boats.
“Great Britain must respect the Brexit agreement
,
”
insisted Olivier Leprêtre, president of the Hauts-de-France regional fisheries committee.
“Do they want to have access to the European market?
Let them give us licenses.
Otherwise we will cut them off.
It was under the conditions of the Brexit agreement. ”
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Olivier Leprêtre refused to detail the forms that the movement could take, the principle of which was validated this weekend by the committees of Normandy and Brittany.
But he ruled out any action that would penalize fishermen or the French processing industry, which depends in particular on British goods.
"We are aiming more for export to Great Britain,"
he said only.
The European Commission, "big absent"
President Emmanuel Macron called him on Sunday to assure him of his support and France's determination to keep up the pressure on Britain.
"The President assured me that the European Commissioner for Fisheries is starting to realize the problem and that he will finally show his teeth,"
said Olivier Leprêtre.
“Because the big missing in this crisis is the European Commission. She was the one who negotiated Brexit, ”
he continued.
Since December 31, 2020, the date of the entry into force of Brexit, Great Britain has asked French boats wishing to fish in English waters to prove the anteriority of their activity in the area.
Currently, the conflict concerns 150 licenses requested by France but refused by London.