§ Mr. Nicholas Bennettasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what action is being taken by Her Majesty's Government to ensure that ships operating from British ports are crewed with 75 per cent. British nationals.
§ Mr. GummerIt has not been the Government's policy to require British fishing vessels to be crewed with 75 per cent. British nationals.
The British Fishing Boats Act and Order 1983 require any British fishing boat fishing in British fishery limits to be crewed with 75 per cent. British citizens or nationals of another member state of the European Community.
From 1 January 1986 vessels over 10 m have been subject to new licence conditions designed to ensure that vessels fishing against the United Kingdom quotas under the common fisheries policy had a real economic link with this country. These conditions include requirements that the vessel should operate from the United Kingdom, Isle of Man or Channel Islands and that 75 per cent. of the crew should be British nationals or nationals of a Community member state (other than, until 1 January 1993, Spain and Portugal under transitional arrangements on the free movement of labour in the treaty of accession) ordinarily resident in this country. These licence conditions have been the subject of judicial review proceedings and of references to the European Court of Justice for a preliminary ruling under article 177 of the treaty of Rome as to their compatibility with various provisions of Community law.