Call to end overfishing to save British fish supper

Key UK fish stocks face 'imminent' collapse due to overexploitation, as Emily Beament reports

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A school of pouting

(Juan Cuetos/Oceana UK)

KEY UK fish stocks could face "imminent" collapse without action to halt overfishing, conservationists have warned.

Oceana UK has called on the Government to set catch quotas in line with the science and save the traditional British fish supper, as a report from the charity shows many fish stocks are in a perilous state.

The report reveals half the UK's top 10 commercial fish stocks are either at critically low levels or are being overexploited - with fishing limits set above what the science recommends for sustainable fisheries - or both.

North Sea cod, for which scientists recently recommended a “zero catch” this year to protect the stock, has been overfished to critically low levels but is still being overexploited.

Other leading fish stocks under threat include southern North Sea edible crab populations which are critically low, while North Sea herring and north east Atlantic mackerel are being overexploited.

The conservation charity warned overfishing was “a political choice” and called for UK politicians to bring in a plan to halt it in order to secure healthy seas and the future of the fishing industry and coastal communities.

Overall, the report found that just two fifths (41%) of 105 UK commercial fish stocks that were assessed were confirmed to be in a healthy state.