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Fisheries: Protection

Volume 463: debated on Monday 3 September 2007

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 23 July 2007, Official Report, columns 648-50W, on fisheries: protection, why the Royal Navy Fishery Protection Service contracted days have been reduced to 700 up to a maximum of 750. (153475)

As part of negotiations of the new agreement to apply from 1 April 2008, officials of the Marine and Fisheries Agency, Ministry of Defence and Royal Navy reviewed the operational requirements and budget implications for future patrol activity at sea. It was decided that the operational needs could be delivered through the provision of 700 patrol days for 2008-09, and with the agreement providing for a minimum of 600 and maximum of 750 patrol days per year, using the more modern and efficient River Class Patrol vessels. The existing arrangements are based on a mixture of River and Hunt Class vessels.