COUNCIL GROUP SAYS THERE SHOULD HAVE BEEN MORE CO-OPERATION

A REPORT by councillors into an incident which saw a mass wash-up of dead crustaceans on North East beaches has criticised a lack of co-operation from Government agencies.

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Cllr Philip Thompson, who chaired the working group behind the report, said the significant die offs first discovered in Redcar and Saltburn in October 2021 had been "unprecedented in its magnitude".

He said "considerable challenges" had been faced in its investigations, including inadequate engagement and co-operation from public bodies, most notably the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra).

Cllr Thompson, who represents Saltburn on Redcar and Cleveland Council, said this had hindered meaningful dialogue and claimed replies received had often been "disrespectful" to the local authority efforts.

When contacted for comment, Defra did not respond directly to the criticism, but said it continued to monitor marine life around the coast and was open to further engagement with researchers and the academic community.

The cross-working group, which included councillors from Redcar and Cleveland and Hartlepool councils, as well as representatives from Middlesbrough, Stockton and later North Yorkshire County Council, was formed in November 2022 in response to a series of motions tabled across the area by elected members dissatisfied with the Government-led response, and aimed to further explore circumstances surrounding the shellfish deaths.

Its final report calls for a greater awareness of issues impacting fishing and coastal communities and says the impact of the marine die-offs was "catastrophic" with most areas along the coast in both directions from the mouth of the Tees experiencing a subsequent fall in catches and the livelihoods of many people being permanently altered.

It said response mechanisms needed to be more robust and timelier to address potential similar incidents in the future.