§ Mr. Peter Millsasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (1) whether he will ban the use of nylon monofilament nets when used for the fishing of bass;
(2) what steps he will now take to protect bass in sanctuaries like the Eddystone reefs;
(3) whether in his discussions with other EEC Ministers over EEC fishing policy he will include bass sanctuaries such as the Manacles and the Eddystone reefs as conservation areas.
§ Mr. Buchanan-SmithWe have been considering whether bass stocks need additional protection as a result of increased fishing effort. In the light of the available scientific evidence, we have concluded that an early increase in the minimum size for bass from 26cm to 38cm would be justified, and officials from the relevant fishery departments have been instructed to seek the views of interested organisations on a proposal that this increase be introduced on 1 March 1981. The increase would protect young bass in inshore areas and help the stock to withstand any increased fishing pressure by raising the average age of recruitment to the fishery; it would also give a higher yield per recruit.
In view of this proposal for a major change in the arrangements, I do not consider that other measures, such as the establishment of bass sanctuaries as conservation areas or a ban on the use of nylon monofilament nets when fishing for bass would also be justified.