The fact is that other EU countries, having fished out their own waters, are desperate for ours
It is no coincidence that the EU's chief Brexit negotiator, Michel Barnier, is a former French fishing minister who wants his countrymen to keep over-fishing our sea bass and anything else they can. It is also a natural desire for Germans. Almost all the herring they consume and 60 per cent of mackerel comes from British waters. One of the country's largest fish processing plants, Rugen Fisch, is in an area where Chancellor Angela Merkel has often canvassed during elections.
In my time as MP for Grimsby, I witnessed the over-fishing that the Common Fisheries Policy had led to, and have watched as foreign vessels suspected of over-fishing escaped checks by inspectors because they were too fast, while British boats that had done nothing wrong had nets inspected.
One of the worst scandals was the flagrant abuse of the rules which have allowed foreign vessels to register as British to cynically catch our quota.
Most surreally, I was once introduced to a man who I was told was the 'chair of the Fleetwood (Lancashire) Fishing Vessel Owners'. He was Spanish and spoke little English.
I've witnessed, in foreign ports, fish that has been illegally caught, being landed without a single check.
There's no reason for prolonging this farce. Or Britain's sad and enormous sacrifice.
The British fishing industry can only be rebuilt by safeguarding our waters and having the ability to enforce sustainable fishing. Only that certainty will bring investment.
After four decades of neglect and decline, our coastal fishing areas mustn't be betrayed again. I'm sorry, Mr Hammond, they are not negotiating counters simply to be traded away. They're a way of life and a vital British industry.
It's time for us to stand up and tell Monsieur Barnier: 'Allez vous en!'
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