§ Mr. Lagden (Hornchurch)To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, if he will make a statement on the decision of the fishing industry to restrict the landing of Faroese fish in this country.
§ Mr. SoamesRepresentatives of the catching side of the industry asked to see the Secretary of State for Scotland and me and informed us that they propose to operate the landing facilities they control so as to limit the volume of landings by Faroese vessels to the average level of such landings in the past ten years. There is no question of a ban by them on Faroese landings. Having regard to the exclusion of British trawlers from waters that they have traditionally fished for so long a time, and which are so important to the economy of the fishing industry in Aberdeen and Grimsby, their reaction seems to me to be understandable. The action proposed will not materially reduce our total supplies of fish and should not therefore significantly affect prices. Even if the Government had power to intervene, which we have not, I do not think there are grounds for seeking to influence this decision of the industry.