Committee publication · Correspondence · 6 January 2026
Correspondence from Dame Angela Eagle, Minister of State for Food Security and Rural Affairs, Defra, regarding mackerel sharing agreement, dated 16 December 2025
From: Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee
Inquiry: Fisheries and the marine environment
Summary
Dame Angela Eagle, Minister of State for Food Security and Rural Affairs, informs the EFRA Committee chair that the UK signed a mackerel quota-sharing agreement on 15 December 2025 with the Faroe Islands, Iceland, and Norway. The agreement aims to reduce overfishing by bringing quota levels closer to the Total Allowable Catch, includes banking/borrowing limits, addresses Russian fishing in international waters, and sets 2026 quotas using a scaled FMSY approach projected to increase spawning stock biomass by 8.5% by 2027.
Key findings
- UK signed multilateral mackerel quota-sharing agreement with Faroe Islands, Iceland, and Norway on 15 December 2025, building on successful 2024 trilateral arrangements.
- Agreement includes limits on quota banking and borrowing between years and measures to address Russian Federation fishing in international waters.
- 2026 quotas set using scaled FMSY approach would decrease Total Allowable Catch by 48% compared to 2025, projected to increase mackerel spawning stock biomass by approximately 8.5% by 2027.
- Agreement requests ICES produce a long-term management strategy for the stock; Norway and Faroe access levels to UK waters remain unchanged from 2024 trilateral agreement.
- UK government committed to securing comprehensive agreement with all coastal states for long-term North-East Atlantic mackerel stock sustainability.
Tone
FactualTopics
Key actors
Dame Angela Eagle, Alistair Carmichael, Defra, UK Government, Faroe Islands, Iceland, Norway, Russian Federation
Notable line
“… the agreement puts in place several further measures. These include limits on the 'banking and borrowing' of mackerel quota between years …”
Key Quotes
“The purpose of this agreement is to bring down further the level by which the sum of coastal states' mackerel quotas exceeds the agreed Total Allowable Catch for the stock.”
“It therefore represents an important further stepping stone toward a long-term quota-sharing arrangement involving all coastal States, ensuring that we tackle overfishing and secure the sustainability of this vital stock.”
“If applied by all coastal states in the fishery, this approach would see the TAC decrease by 48% in 2026 compared to 2025. This measure is projected to increase mackerel spawning stock biomass by around 8.5% by”
“The UK government remains fully committed to working together with all coastal States to secure a comprehensive agreement that delivers long-term sustainability for the North- East Atlantic mackerel stock …”
Source · parliament.uk record ↗