29 Sep 2026
Photo by Ludovic Gauthier The Marine Management Organisation (MMO) has published new guidance setting out how it assesses and manages activities in marine protected areas (MPAs) within 12 nautical miles of the English coast. It has found that more than half of England’s inshore MPAs may be vulnerable to recreational and other non-licensable activities. The guidance, […]
29 Sep 2026
Photo by William Hook The Marine Management Organisation (MMO) has begun work to improve its Catch Recording App and web service, following technical issues that have affected the submission of catch records, particularly through the mobile app. The upgraded service has been revised from the ground up to provide a more reliable and resilient platform. […]
25 Aug 2026
Photo by Rob Wicks The Marine Management Organisation (MMO) has launched a dedicated GOV.UK page to keep the public, industry and scientists updated on the ongoing common octopus bloom in South West England, pulling together sightings data, research updates and monthly landings figures in one place. Since 2025 there has been a marked rise in sightings […]
04 Aug 2026
Photo by Ben Elliott The Marine Management Organisation (MMO) has launched a push to improve public understanding of the legal protections around Britain’s two native seahorse species, warning divers, snorkellers and film crews that intentionally disturbing them without a licence could result in enforcement action. Both the spiny or long-snouted seahorse (Hippocampus guttulatus) and […]
06 Jul 2026
Photo credit: Nick Fewings The Marine Management Organisation has approved more than £1 million through the Fisheries and Seafood Scheme since it reopened in April and is now encouraging smaller operators to come forward. The scheme reopened on 13 April and is run by the MMO on behalf of Defra, drawing on more than £132 […]
30 Jun 2026
Photo by Paul Einerhand The Marine Management Organisation (MMO) has confirmed it will publish a new dataset linking UK fishing landings to the exact locations where they were caught, in a pre-announcement covering the 2024 data year. The dataset, named the Landings Enriched Approach for Positional FISHeries data, or LEAPFISH, is provisionally due for release […]
16 Jun 2026
Photo by Leticia Golubov The Marine Management Organisation (MMO) is urging eligible English fishermen to register promptly for replacement inshore vessel monitoring system (I-VMS) devices, as the roll-out moves into its next phase. Owners of under-12 metre English fishing vessels currently fitted with Succorfish SC2 devices will be able to register for a Nemo device supplied […]
09 Jun 2026
Photo by Diego Romeo The Marine Management Organisation (MMO) has confirmed it is resuming the roll-out of its Inshore Vessel Monitoring System (I-VMS) programme, having reached an agreement with CLS UK Ltd, formerly known as Fulcrum Maritime Systems Ltd, to supply type-approved tracking devices to England’s entire under-12 metre fishing fleet. Fishermen affected by the collapse […]
