Minister warns fishermen breaking laws face prosecution

Wed, 16 Aug 2017

DEFA political member Martyn Perkins and Minister Geoffrey Boot spent the day on board the fisheries' protection vessel.

The Minister responsible for the Island's fisheries warns those breaking the Island's fishing laws will face prosecution and heavy financial penalties.

Geoffrey Boot's comments come after spending the day on board the Department of Environment, Food and Agriculture's fisheries protection vessel Barrule.

The vessel is used to track down those fishing in areas closed for conservation, as well as catching fishermen using illegal equipment or catching too many fish.

Mr Boot says the Island's sea fisheries are of immense value to the Manx economy, and that legislation must be enforced to ensure vessels to exploit the fisheries.

The Government estimates the sea fisheries are worth around £20m to the economy and support 400 jobs.