Furious fishermen in Cornwall have been left “blindsided” by Sir Keir Starmer’s Brexit-reset deal, which has delivered the very opposite of what they had campaigned for. Shrinking quotas and a surge in paperwork are driving workers out of the industry, as frustration mounts over the Prime Minister turning fish into a “luxury item”. In May, the UK agreed to a 12-year fishing deal with the European Union, allowing continued access for EU vessels to British waters.

However, industry insiders say it feels like the “rug was pulled from underneath” them, and they now fear for the next generation’s future. Sam Chapman, owner of Pengelley’s Fishmongers, was once a successful wholesaler. But due to dwindling supply, he has shifted his focus to retail. Explaining the impact of the deal, the 32-year-old said that the imposed quotas are inflating fish prices, turning what was once a “staple part of our diet” into a “once-a-fortnight luxury”.

Sam Chapman, 32, worries what there will be left to hand to his children (Image: Humphrey Nemar)

“The fishing deal won’t change anything, and that’s the issue, that nothing has changed,” Mr Chapman said. “There’s not a lot of quota left here, and it’s all been allocated elsewhere – we were hoping for more quota in the deal.”

He added: “Every year it seems to get more and more dull. You wonder what you’re leaving behind for the kids.”

The post-Brexit fishing deal initially granted the EU five more years of access to UK waters, which was set to expire next year. But in the recent Brexit summit, Sir Keir extended this agreement for an additional 12 years.

Mr Chapman noted that reduced quotas are driving fish prices higher. He explained: “It’s getting to a stage now with the public where you can’t really afford to eat. Fish used to be a staple part of a diet, and now it’s a luxury.”

He explained that regular customers who once visited his shop several times a week now only come in for a “once-a-fortnight treat”.

Meanwhile, fishermen are still reeling from drastic cuts to pollack quotas and tight restrictions on bass.

The UK’s total pollack quota was slashed by a staggering 86% in 2024, from 1,506 tonnes in 2023 to just 203 tonnes.

Julian Clemence has been hit particularly hard by the quotas (Image: Humphrey Nemar)

Julian Clemence, a pollack fisherman from Looe, has felt the full force of these reductions, earning just £500 per month during the first quarter of the year.

“I didn’t catch anything for about three months. We spent January, February, and March basically making around £500 a month, and that’s it. There was nothing to catch, no bass, no mackerel.”

Due to the lack of supply, Mr Clemence was forced to sell one of his fishing businesses. He’s now urging the Government to “pay attention to what they’re being told” by those in the industry.

Rob Parsonage, leader of Reform UK’s Cornwall group, criticised Labour for “pulling the rug from underneath” the fishermen who had been involved in negotiations ahead of the deal.

Chris Ranford, CEO of the Cornwall Fish Producers’ Organisation (CFPO), had been in talks with fisheries ministers before the Brexit reset deal. But according to Mr Parsonage, “decisions were being made elsewhere”.

“He was blindsided,” the Reform councillor said of Mr Ranford.

“The negotiations weren’t actually going on in good faith by the looks of it. And now, undoubtedly, it’s going to hit the fisherman,” he added.

“They had planned and had been doing all this work based on the rules changing, and they’ve had the rug pulled from underneath them.”

In response to the summit’s outcome, Mr Ranford issued a scathing letter to the Prime Minister, calling the meetings he attended to “co-design” the deal “pointless” and accusing Sir Keir of making a “mess of our industry”.

Reporter Lotti O’Brien speaks with the Reform group leader for Cornwall, Rob Parsonage (Image: Humphrey Nemar)

The letter stated: “In the short space of 10 months, we have seen nothing but taking away [of] any hint of opportunity [for] the UK fishing industry and its surrounding coastal communities, and it’s now a wonder what else can Keir Starmer do to make more of a mess of our industry.”

It continued: “For all of the hard work that Cornish fishermen have put into shaping up the new post Brexit world under the UK Fisheries Act, attending countless meetings to ‘co-design’ new fisheries management plans, it all feels rather pointless given the outcome of this new trade deal.

“The lack of future opportunity the deal holds for our fishing businesses, our coastal communities, our next generation of fishermen, let alone our ability to manage our own seas, will beg the question of any fisherman, why bother getting involved in fishing policy and politics ever again. Especially knowing that the EU will be marking our homework every step of the way.

“How far we are from being a true independent coastal state.”

In a bid to drum up support, Mr Parsonage now plans to write to all 87 councillors in Cornwall, urging them to sign a petition demanding change.