An investigation by Greenpeace UK reveals that giant supertrawlers continue to catch fish in the UK’s Marine Protected Areas, despite the UK government having had the powers to prevent them doing so since Brexit.

Photo: Christian Aslund/Greenpeace

Investigators found that from January 2020 to January 2025, 26 supertrawlers spent significant time fishing in 44 of the UK’s offshore Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). Greenpeace said that on average they spent 7,380 hours fishing in MPAs every year and the majority of these vessels were foreign-flagged, selling most of their catch overseas.

Greenpeace pointed out that all these supertrawlers were operating legally. Supertrawlers are ‘massive industrial freezer trawlers measuring more than 100m in length. They can catch hundreds of tonnes of pelagic fish species like herring and blue whiting in a day using enormous nets. Due to their size and immense catch capability, supertrawlers also catch large quantities of non-target animals, or bycatch, including dolphins and porpoises as well as sharks, seals and rays. A less-known but equally damaging practice is high-grading, the discarding of low-value catches in order to preserve the quota for high-value fish, which is illegal’, Greenpeace said.

Greenpeace UK’s investigation found that only ten MPAs accounted for more than 80% of all supertrawler fishing time calculated between 2020 and 2025.

Erica Finnie, oceans campaigner at Greenpeace UK, said: “The government is failing our protected seas. Marine Protected Areas should be places for fish, marine biodiversity and habitats to rest and recover from the damage caused by human activities. But the government is making a mockery of our MPAs by allowing these places to be routinely fished – despite having had the powers to ban industrial fishing vessels from protected waters since we left the EU.

By allowing industrial fishing to continue in our protected areas, the government is degrading entire MPAs from the north of Scotland to the south of Cornwall. To be taken seriously as a leader on ocean protection, the UK government must ban supertrawlers, and other types of industrial fishing, from our Marine Protected Areas.”

Phil Taylor, Director of Open Seas, said: “The UK has had a network of supposedly protected marine areas for a decade, yet damage continues to occur on a daily basis. This investigation shows that so often the businesses profiting from damaging our seas do little to strengthen our economy or food security.

The Scottish Government recently ran a consultation on how best to manage fishing in offshore protected areas, but it was sadly clear that some proposals, such as those for the Central Fladen area, were far too weak to have the impact that’s needed. Government ministers must act now to end the harms caused by unmanaged trawling in marine protected areas, so that our seas can regenerate for future generations.”

The full press release from Greenpeace can be read here.