§ Mr. WyattTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (1) if his Department controls the rights to(a) fishing and (b) fishing sea bass from Garrison Point to Allington Locks on the River Medway; [105900]
(2) if he will make a statement on the relationship of the jurisdiction vested in (a) his Department and (b) Rochester Oyster and Floating Fishery over who can fish from Garrison Point to Allington Lock on the River Medway. [105901]
§ Mr. Morley[holding answer 20 January 2000]: The English common law recognises a public right of fishing in territorial tidal waters. However, that common law right can have been abrogated or limited (including in relation to the methods by which it may be exercised) in a number of ways in the past, including by domestic or European legislation, by private Act of Parliament, by Charter or by ancient usage.
As far as is known, there is no exhaustive list of instances where the common law right has been abrogated or limited in the ways described. Therefore, only the courts are in a position to be able to rule on whether the fishery referred to by my hon. Friend between Garrison Point and Allington Lock is a public fishery or a private fishery owned by or granted to the Rochester Oyster and Floating Fishery and, if the latter, the extent of that private fishery.
However, the private rights, if any, in this fishery have been limited by various elements of EC legislation, including restrictions on minimum landing size and mesh size as well as by the establishment of the bass nursery area at the Isle of Grain Power Station Outfall.