03 Mar 2026

Photo by Doncoombez   The UK Government has laid a draft statutory instrument to amend the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations, bringing forward new powers to enable offshore wind deployment under the Energy Act 2023 — a long-awaited reform that conservation groups have cautiously welcomed, while warning that a critical flaw in the draft […]

13 Jan 2026

Photo by Gerald Schömbs   Great white sharks in the Mediterranean Sea face extinction within years as illegal fishing and weak enforcement of international protections push the iconic predators toward collapse, according to research by US scientists working with the UK charity Blue Marine Foundation. The Mediterranean white shark population is now classified as Critically Endangered by […]

09 Jan 2024

Every year, around 70,000 turtles and 200,000 seabirds die as a result of being caught as bycatch in EU fishing fleets.   Bycatch is when other marine species are unintentionally trapped by commercial fishing gear. This can account for up to 40% of total fishing catches, globally reaching as much as 38 million tonnes discarded per […]

08 Nov 2022

The mysterious Greenland shark – thought to have the longest lifespan of any vertebrate – has been granted new, historic protections by the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization (NAFO). The US and Canada, with support from the UK and the EU, proposed and secured a science-based ban on retaining the species from international waters.     […]

23 Aug 2022

Bycatch monitoring programmes in the UK estimate that thousands of cetaceans, seabirds, seals and elasmobranchs are caught each year. Through the Fisheries Act 2020 and the Joint Fisheries Statement (JFS), the UK government and devolved administrations have recognised the need to minimise and, where possible, eliminate bycatch of these sensitive marine species as part of […]

09 Nov 2021

Bass industry guidance 2021 Information on the rules, regulations and restrictions for bass fishing in 2021 and 2022 MMO guidance Details The Sea Fisheries (Amendment etc.) Regulations 2021 retained and amended the Bass Measures 2020 as per Article 10 of Council Regulation (EU). Bass authorisations are applicable within the British Fishery Limits only. You should refer to […]