Reynolds refuses to deny report saying EU fishing rights in UK waters extended for 12 years under deal
Nick Robinson puts it to Reynolds that a 12-year fishing deal would be longer than anyone was expecting. The fishing industry, which believes the EU’s current access rights to UK waters are already too generous and wants them cut back, are bound to object.
Reynolds won’t confirm the 12-year figure. But he says there is a good case for moving away from having annual negotiations over fishing (which was supposed to be the process from 2026, under the original post-Brexit deal negotiated by Boris Johnson) to having a system with more “consistency”.
Key events
There are strong 2019 echoes in what the Conservatives, Reform UK and all other Brexiters are saying about the deal today. This was evident in Andrew Bowie’s interview on the Today programme this morning (see 9.12am), and also on the front pages of the pro-Brexit papers.
But it is worth point out that public opinion on Brexit has shifted considerably since 2019, which means this messaging is likely to be a lot less effective than it was when Boris Johnson was using it. According to YouGov polling published in January, Britons now believe that leaving the EU was a mistake by almost two to one.
Steve Bray, the anti-Brexit campaigner who still stages a regular, and noisy, protest outside the Houses of Parliament, has decamped to Lancaster House this morning. But he is not protesting today. He has been playing the Ode to Joy, and has told police that what he is staging is “more of a celebration”.
The Scottish Conservatives have issued a statement denouncing the fishing agreement. This is from Tim Eagle, fishing spokesperson for the Tories in the Scottish parliament.
This agreement is an absolute disaster for the Scottish fishing industry. Sir Keir Starmer and the UK Labour government have not just surrendered to the European Union’s demands, they have totally capitulated to them.
The deal is a shameful betrayal of our fishermen and will go down like a lead balloon in our coastal communities across Scotland. It is even worse than they feared.
Jennifer Rankin
Jennifer Rankin is the Guardian’s Brussels correspondent.
EU officials have hailed the agreements with the UK as starting “a new chapter in relations”.
The bloc’s most senior diplomats from all 27 member states met early on Monday to approve the three texts that are due to be signed later by Keir Starmer, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council president António Costa.
The three documents are: 1) a security and defence agreement; 2) a joint statement setting out common views on global challenges, such as the war in Ukraine; and 3) a common understanding paper – the key text pointing the way to further agreements including a youth mobility deal and veterinary agreement.
An EU official said:
We have entered a new chapter in our relations with [the] UK – a neighbour, an ally and a global partner.
The negotiation process in the run-up to this summit went until the last minute. But negotiations took place always in good faith on both sides, and the result is very positive for both.
Simon Clarke, levelling up secretary when Liz Truss was PM, former MP for Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland and a leader Tory Brexiter, has described today’s deal as “a triumph of elite concerns”. He posted this on social media.
Today is a triumph of elite concerns – youth mobility, 5 minutes quicker through the airport in Tuscany in summer – over those of working class Britain.
It’s not these people, or their kids, who will miss out on jobs or have their wages undercut by EU labour. They don’t care about scarce fishing grounds being hoovered up by French or Spanish super trawlers. They don’t worry about whether British agriculture is stopped from innovating. And so it goes on.
We spent 4 years battling to leave the EU properly, to avoid the utter humiliation of leaving only in part, and becoming a ruletaker. That’s not only because of the practical consequences – it renders leaving largely pointless – but also because it’s the thin end of the wedge to take us back in (“why not go back and have a seat at the table?”).
Reporters were asking Keir Starmer “Have you sold out the fish?” as he arrived at Lancaster House. ITV News has the clip.
All the key figures have now arrived at Lancaster House for the UK-EU summit.
As Eleni Courea and Lisa O’Carroll revealed in a Guardian story at the weekend, the deal will involve an agreement for UK passport holders to use e-gates across Europe – allowing British holidaymakers to get through airports more quickly.
In a post on social media, Joe Barnes from the Telegraph has a picture of what the text of the agreement says about this.
Steve Baker, the former minister and leading Tory Brexiter, says that, because there is no current legal ban on Britons using e-gates at EU airports (as paragraph 16 quoted above says), this does not amount to a “win” for Labour in the negotiations.
Ed Davey welcomes deal and urges Starmer to ignore ‘naysayers and dinosaurs’ in Reform UK and Tory party
The Liberal Democrats have welcomed news of the deal with the EU as a “positive step”. In a statement, Ed Davey, the Lib Dem leader, said:
These seem to be some positive first steps in rebuilding our relationship with Europe after years of a Conservative party that wrecked trust and broke our relationship with our closest allies.
The prime minister must ignore the naysayers and dinosaurs in Reform and the Conservative party and be more ambitious in getting the best deal in the national interest.
Lisa O’Carroll
Lisa O’Carroll is a Guardian correspondent covering Brexit and trade.
It is understood the fishing deal will run for 12 years until 2038 with concessions for fishing industries such as processing that don’t have direct access to the seas.
This would mean fish processing can take place anywhere including in UK communities that ended up setting up complex and costly veterinary certification to comply with Brexit export health and safety rules
Tory claims about EU deal being ‘surrender’ are ‘nonsense’, says Conservative peer and supermarket boss Stuart Rose
Stuart Rose, the Asda chair and former Marks & Spencer boss who sits in the Lords as a Conservative party chair, has said that it is “nonsense” for his party to describe the today’s deal with the EU as “surrender”. (See 9.12am.)
In an interview with Times Radio, asked if agreed with the “surrender” claim made by the Tories, Rose replied:
No, it’s nonsense. I really am quite disappointed and sad that I live in a country – you know, I am a Conservative, although I am not a politically active Conservative, I’m not a politician. But to hear that the Conservatives are saying we must be rule givers and not rule takers. It’s about giving a bit, taking a bit, and understanding this is a very difficult, unpleasant world we live in.
And we’ve got to make sure that for the UK public and for the UK, we do our best. That’s what we elect our politicians to do. That’s what I expect them to do. And talking about small things like surrender is pathetic.
Rose, who was a leading anti-Brexit campaigner in 2016 (unlike those leading the Conservative party now), described the deal as a “win” for Britain.
Rachel Reeves, the chancellor, told business leaders in Downing Street this morning that the deal with the EU would be “about bringing more good jobs to our country, it’s about reducing prices in the shops for consumers, as your costs fall as businesses, and, crucially, it’s about our defence partnership with our allies”.
According to Natasha Clark from LBC, the government is going to announce extra money for the fishing industry.
Gov sources say new £360m extra for coastal fishing
Say the EU tried to tie fishing deal to business agricultural checks, but it’s been confirmed there won’t be a time limit on those
Unclear exactly what checks will be relaxed and how at the moment
Deal could lead to ‘end of fishing industry’, Farage claims
Nigel Farage, the Reform UK leader, has claimed that, if the EU retains access to UK fishing waters for another 12 years, as reported, that will amount to the “end of the fishing industry. He posted this on social media.
If true that will be the end of the fishing industry.
