Norway stops cross-border fishing in the Skagerrak from the turn of the year.
Sweden’s Rural Affairs Minister Peter Kullgren is disappointed.
– The government regrets Norway’s unilateral decision, which will primarily affect shrimp fishing, he says.
The annual fishing meetings between the EU and Norway on the fishing opportunities next year ended yesterday. Norway has previously announced that it wants to stop cross-border fishing in the Skagerrak from January 1, 2024, and after the consultations ended on Friday, the decision was made.
– Cross-border fishing has led to weakened control of fishing in the Skagerrak, and it is an issue that the government has been working on for several years, said Fisheries and Oceans Minister Cecilie Myrseth in a statement earlier this week.
Government: “Regrets Norway’s unilateral decision”
Sweden’s Rural Affairs Minister Peter Kullgren is disappointed by the decision.
– The government regrets Norway’s unilateral decision, which will mainly affect shrimp fishing. Currently, shrimp fishing vessels cross the border several times during one and the same fishing trip. The ban will lead to increased fuel consumption, time and labor costs for vessels that cross the border to continue fishing in Norwegian waters, he says.
The Skagerrak agreement has previously meant that countries have cooperated around traditional fishing in the Skagerrak. The regulations are today part of the cooperation between the EU and Norway.
Makes collaboration more difficult
Among other things, the government criticizes the Norwegian decision because it “departs from previous practice of finding common solutions to achieve the best possible control and management of the common stocks”, according to Kullgren.
The Norwegian government writes in a statement on the website that the ban will in the long run “contribute to a better overview of the stock situation”.
From the Swedish side, there is criticism that the Skagerrak agreement, which according to the government helped maintain “sustainable management of the fisheries in the Skagerrak”, now makes cooperation more difficult.