Fisheries
Environment Food and Rural Affairs
Alison Seabeck (Plymouth, Moor View, Labour)
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether her Department received any external advice on the prospect of assembling a case to support a request to the European Commission for an increase in the kilowatt days limit for the scallop fishery in the western waters or a realignment of effort from Area VI to Area VII.
Richard Benyon (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Natural Environment and Fisheries), Environment, Food and Rural Affairs; Newbury, Conservative)
DEFRA has sought advice from Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (CEFAS), our marine scientific advisers, on whether or not an evidence based justification exists for increasing effort in Area VII. CEFAS advised that such a justification could not be made on the available evidence at this time.