Relationship between France and UK

British fishing companies willingly sold their quotas to foreign companies, nobody forced them. Now Fishing leave wants them back, or at least 60% of the catch ...

no-one can willingly sell and then want it all back- no cake and eat it, and no sell fish and own them either.

Fact is though, that large Dutch and other trawlers are getting fishing rights, and small family companies from Britanny, with a very traditonal way of life, are not. I can totally understand why they are so angry, and why they may decide for direct action at Ports and Tunnel.

Fishing was one of the key sticking points in negotiations between the UK and the EU over their new trade agreement.

The deal, which came into force on 1 January 2021, still allows EU boats to fish in UK waters for some years to come but gives UK boats a greater share of the catch (or quota).

The question of who has the right to fish in UK waters is further complicated by the fact that significant parts of the British quota have been sold off to foreign-owned boats, which sail under a British flag.
Half of England's quota in foreign hands

£160m worth of England's fishing quota is in the hands of vessels owned by companies based in Iceland, Spain and the Netherlands, according to BBC research.

That amounts to 130,000 tonnes of fish a year and 55% of the quota's annual value in 2019.

Quotas are used by many countries to manage shared fish stocks. They determine how many fish of each species each country's fleets are allowed to catch.

My friend told me the same happened in the Scottish islands when that Thatcher woman was in charge. Her brothers all lost their jobs, they had been fishing there for generations.

Thanks- but they do take massive amounts of 'British' fish (à la Rees Mogg) - and are huge commercial over-fishing enterprises, that mostly do not employ Brits.

Why should the way of life, for centuries, of small family fishermen in Brittany not be able to continue? Can you imagine if that happened to fishermen in Dorset, Devon and Cornwall.

Kali2
Some Dutch trawlers sail under a uk flag ( paying tax in the uk)
and therefore use our ports but offload the catch in holland.

Yes, tragic. We are really concerned about them blockading the Tunnel and Ports, as we will be very directly affected- but tbh, I couldn't really blame them.

That's bad news Kali. I read a Breton article this week which said said that the French shipyards in the Breton ports were in danger of losing these construction skills.
Primarily because boats were a third cheaper made in Morocco, and also due to the stricter French regulatory context making things difficult. And in addition, fewer possibilities to maintain the boats in Brittany.
So many blows for that region.

Huge trawling firms from Holland, with UK links, have been given all the fishing licences they wanted- whilst 50% of licences for small family Breton fishermen have been stopped.

Where the justice or sense in that?

Mummer

Relationship has always consisted of: french hate Brits/french do something awful.-brits sort french out......time and time again...: French hate Brits for sorting them out....

Sorry, but the evidence is there that the French are often more than a match for anyone. They don't need sorting out by anyone.

Petera

Mummer

Relationship has always consisted of: french hate Brits/french do something awful.-brits sort french out......time and time again...: French hate Brits for sorting them out....

That weird sound you can hear is a thousand jaws dropping and scraping on the floor.

I think it kind of illustrates a highly debated point I made earlier on this thread

Mummer

Relationship has always consisted of: french hate Brits/french do something awful.-brits sort french out......time and time again...: French hate Brits for sorting them out....

That weird sound you can hear is a thousand jaws dropping and scraping on the floor.

sodapop

We had the same experience with mince pies Josianne a tradition that doesn't travel

Especially when like a fool, after a few glasses, I tried to explain it was viande hachée! I think it was Henry V11 who started the trend with chopped up meat and fruit? So I was close - ish!

We had the same experience with mince pies Josianne a tradition that doesn't travel

Mamie

Have to say that one bonus of Covid for me has been the absence of the endless handshaking and bisous. You always needed an extra half hour at the beginning of village events for the bisous. And yes all those tricky decisions about two, three or four, left or right first.
It will be interesting to see if it comes back after Covid.

I hope not. The last time I had bronchitis was after a round of bisous. I started to shake hands instead I got one or two funny looks but they understood.

Relationship has always consisted of: french hate Brits/french do something awful.-brits sort french out......time and time again...: French hate Brits for sorting them out....

Don't get me started on all that business Mamie, it seems different in every region, every age group, every family.
What I would say the French are brilliant at is digital illuminations on churches. I have been following various towns this week. The best one I ever saw live was in Reims. Magnigfque.
Happy thoughts to end with.

Have to say that one bonus of Covid for me has been the absence of the endless handshaking and bisous. You always needed an extra half hour at the beginning of village events for the bisous. And yes all those tricky decisions about two, three or four, left or right first.
It will be interesting to see if it comes back after Covid.

sazz1

My son went to work nr Paris for 2 weeks as part of a joint project programming computer chips.
First day in the office all the staff came to shake hands with him which he found welcoming. Same next day and every day until he left. I guess it was part of the formal French culture. When we had French students to stay they were amazed that a barbecue was not a 'sit down at a laid table with hosts serving and cooking' event.

I've heard a French person referring to it as "ah, the British standing up dinner"

Now that's interesting sazz1

Going to work every day in France, not only did I get the daily handshake but I also got the bisous. And depending on where you were, you had to know how many bisous to expect .

My son went to work nr Paris for 2 weeks as part of a joint project programming computer chips.
First day in the office all the staff came to shake hands with him which he found welcoming. Same next day and every day until he left. I guess it was part of the formal French culture. When we had French students to stay they were amazed that a barbecue was not a 'sit down at a laid table with hosts serving and cooking' event.

I was invited to a dinner party in France and politely explained to the lady of the house in advance that I didn't eat meat.

pas de problème she said.

We had foie gras. ?

Round here it is Tripe à la mode de Caen. Bleurgh. ?

Well it goes both ways- many Normans have tried to feed me local 'andouilette' and I am NOT eating THAT!

Dinahmo

The only negative comments I've heard French people say are about our cooking. Once they've tried it they're pleasantly surprised.

But try giving them home made mince pies!

Where we lived in the countryside Parisian incomers were resented far more than any British. The ties between Normandy and the UK are strong though. 1066 and 1944 have left their mark all around where we live.