The EU has over 80% MORE BOATS in UK waters as the UK has in theirs

Tonnage of EU fleet in UK waters is 2.6 TIMES that of the UK’s fleet in EU waters, says UK Fisheries Campaign

Montage © Facts4EU.Org and The UK Fisheries Campaign 2025

End-to-end, the EU’s ‘UK waters’ fleet stretches 2.4 times as long as the UK’s ‘EU waters’ fleet

There is a massive disparity between the EU’s ability to enter UK waters to catch fish and the UK’s ability to catch fish in their waters, according to the latest official figures for 2025 – nearly five years after the UK left the EU.

Longer, heavier, and more of them

There is no question but that the EU's fishing fleet in UK waters is enormous in every way - in average boat length, weight, and sheer numbers. To give some idea, if the EU started at Calais and lined up end-to-end all its boats licensed to fish in UK waters, it would be possible for a French person to cross the English Channel without even getting their feet wet.

The total length of the EU's UK-licensed fleet is 22.3 miles - easily enough to cover the distance.

The UK Fisheries Campaign takes on the French President

This analysis has been conducted by the Facts4EU think-tank for the newly-formed UK Fisheries Campaign, which had its formal public launch last week. In this research we looked at the official data for commercial fishing vessels which have been licensed to fish in each other's waters.

With President Macron threatening to demand even more fishing rights in the renewal negotiations this year for the fishing deal between the UK and the bloc, the UK Fisheries Campaign (the UKFC) is releasing its report showing the breathtakingly-lopsided nature of the deal that was agreed first by Theresa May, then ratified by Boris Johnson, back in 2019.

With the UK’s authorities seemingly reluctant to release all types of information which the public should have a right to know, the UKFC has been analysing all the data it has been able to obtain. Amongst these is the list of all the EU fishing boats licensed to fish perfectly legally in UK waters and the list for all the UK boats licensed to fish legally in EU waters.

This report blows Macron’s demands out of the water, says the new UK Fisheries Campaign

The UKFC’s report shows that not only are there far more EU boats in UK waters than vice versa, but that the EU’s boats are significantly larger on average. The combination of superior numbers and much great tonnages per boat produces an extraordinary mismatch, revealed by the UKFC for the first time.

These figures show once and for all, says the UKFC, that far from President Macron and his colleagues demanding more, they should receive much less and be made to pay for the access they are given.

Brexit Facts4EU.Org Summary

EU vessels licensed by the UK authorities to fish in UK sovereign waters
Vs.
UK vessels licensed by the EU authorities to fish in EU waters

1. Numbers of vessels licensed to fish in the other side’s waters

UK vessels fishing in EU waters : 874
EU vessels fishing in UK waters : 1,570 (+81%)

2. Length of vessels licensed to fish in the other side’s waters

Total length of UK vessels in EU waters : 14,924 metres
Total length of EU vessels in UK waters : 35,945 metres (+141%)

Longest UK-registered vessel : 119.7m (393 ft)
Longest EU-registered vessel : 144.6m (474 ft)

To repeat, these figures are not for the entire EU and UK fishing fleets. These are purely for the vessels licensed to fish in each other’s waters. In a convoy, lined end-to-end, the EU’s entire ‘UK waters’ fleet would stretch 2.4 times the length of the UK’s ‘EU waters’ fleet.

Here's how you can help the UK Fisheries Campaign

From the equiv't of £1.50/mth

The UKFC is independent,
non-partisan, and not-for-profit.

It relies for funding on the British public and their fishermen.

(You can also be a 'Supporter' for FREE)

Donate a one-off sum of £5+

Brexit Facts4EU.Org Summary

The tonnages of the UK and EU fleets in each other's waters

Total tonnage of UK fleet : 151,486 tonnes
Total tonnage of EU fleet : 396,096 tonnes
The tonnage of the EU fleet is 2.6 times that of the UK fleet

Less than 4% of the number of its vessels account for 50% of the fleet’s total tonnage.

Observations

Once again this is another report presenting important information which is relevant to the UK's relationjship with the EU. With Sir Keir Starmer allegedly being ready to discuss fisheries in some form of trade-off with President Macron over fishing rights, it is essential that the public and our politicians are fully informed.

We recommend readers keepo a regular eye on the website of the UK Fisheries Campaign at UKFish.org to keep up-to-date on a fast-moving situation.

Finally, please don't forget Facts4EU! Please, please help us to carry on our vital work in defence of independence, sovereignty, democracy and freedom by donating today. Thank you.

[ Sources: United Kingdom Single Issuing Authority (UKSIA) ] Politicians and journalists can contact us for details, as ever.

Brexit Facts4EU.Org, 21 Apr 2025

Click here to go to our news headlines

Please scroll down to COMMENT on the above article.
And don't forget actually to post your message after you have previewed it!

Something to say about this? Scroll down for reader comments

Since before the EU Referendum, Brexit Facts4EU.Org
has been the most prolific researcher and publisher of Brexit facts in the world.

Supported by MPs, MEPs, & other groups, our work has impact.

We think facts matter. Please donate today, so that we can continue to ensure a clean Brexit is finally delivered.

Any credit card user

Quick One-off

From £5 - £1,000

Monthly

From £3 per month

Paypal Users Only - Choose amount first

Quick One-off

Monthly

PLEASE NOTE IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO COMMENT : You can write your comment under any existing comments below. After you have clicked to preview your comment, you MUST then click on the CAPTCHA system and send you comment, for it to be published. Thank you!

Reader Comments 4

1. LuxuryBalloon , Monday, April 21, 2025, 13:05:

The UK fishing fleet consists of 1,215 vessels over 10 meters. Does this Facts4EU report imply that 874 of these 1,215 UK fishing vessels (a staggering 72%) are fishing in EU waters?

2. KB , Monday, April 21, 2025, 14:55:

This October, the EU will impose the full set of third country phytosanitary rules and inspections on UK agricultural produce (and vice versa). This will make it very difficult to sell fresh food into the EU, and make our own food more expensive.
So guess where this leaves the UK fishing industry. It is inevitable that we are going to bargain with fishing rights against veterinary agreement.
As far as I can see we are not taking advantage of CPTPP or any other trade deal and they are absolutely opposed to letting in any US food at all.
So there is no competition for EU suppliers, we seem to be stuck in a single-supplier monopoly situation. I am sure this must be intentional.
The EU will know we really want this veterinary agreement and they will want a high price for it. They will want the existing fishing rights to be extended as part of that price, and the UK Labour government will say oh thank you for that can I clean your boots now ?

3. LuxuryBalloon , Monday, April 21, 2025, 16:53:

2 KB ‘we are not taking advantage of CPTPP’ … the UK fishing industry has refused to take advantage of the CPTPP. Around 70% of the fish caught by the UK fishing industry is exported … predominantly to the EU.
We campaigned hard to win the 2016 Brexit referendum. Brexit was a golden opportunity for our fishermen. Yet, they prefer to moan about the additional administrative burden to export to the EU than to explore world-wide opportunities. It is not successive governments that have let down the UK fishermen. It is the UK fishing industry that have let down Brexiteers like us.

4. Ashley Great Britain , Monday, April 21, 2025, 20:54:

3 lux ball. -
-
I Find it hard to believe you voted to leave the EU buddy.
-
All of these fisheries reports go hand in hand with our decades long EU membership. The whole saga has been designed across the board to get the most out of Britain. Millions of are sick to death of it. The greatest thing we now bear witness to is how complicit, corrupt and incompetent our UK Government's have been for a long time. It's so blatantly obvious that they have had an agenda with the EU for ages.
These fishing reports shine a big light on not only fishing, but all areas and aspects of our situation, even after "Brexit".
-
If anyone was interested, or truly wanted to know, only Reform UK could turn this around. A vote for any other party really is a vote for further, and accelerated decline of Britain.

Add comment:

Please note: Your email address is never published unless you choose to enter it.