George Eustice, the environment secretary, has said the UK is considering retaliatory measures against French vessels as a row over fishing rights escalates. ‘It is always open to us to increase the enforcement we do on French vessels, to board them, if that is what they do to our vessels,’ Eustice said.
The UK has summoned France’s ambassador in London and put two Royal Navy patrol vessels on a state of ‘high readiness’ to tackle potential port blockades after France reacted with fury over reduced access to post-Brexit fishing permits. On Thursday, French maritime police seized a British trawler found in its territorial waters without a licence
Macron’s re-election hopes may be driving Brexit fishing row, says EusticeUK summons French ambassador as fishing rights row escalatesFrance to use ‘language of force’ in post-Brexit fishing rights row