Greenpeace revealed this week that one foreign-owned fishing vessel (a Dutch super-trawler with huge nets covering vast areas of the ocean) controls 6% of the entire UK fishing quota. Meanwhile approximately 5,000 small family-owned British fishing vessels, (comprising nearly 80% of the British fishing fleet) between them control just 4% of the UK’s fishing quota. It almost defies belief.

Fishing quotas were introduced in the 1980s to safeguard fish stocks throughout Europe and the fact that one large foreign-owned commercial vessel has the right to catch considerably more fish than the entire British small fishing boat fleet is nothing short of scandalous.

How and why have successive British governments allowed this to happen? No wonder so many family fishing businesses have gone bankrupt and no wonder our fish stocks continue to suffer in the face of these huge factory ships vacuuming up the ocean.

There is, however, a glimmer of hope since fishing quotas are due to be discussed and re-fixed next month, presenting our government with the opportunity to do something about it. Greenpeace have set up an online petition to put pressure on the government (https://secure.greenpeace.org.uk/fair-fish).

Whilst we may be sceptical about the success of such petitions it is surely a worthy attempt to both protect the UK’s seas and prevent further struggling fishing communities from sinking into oblivion.