Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen has backed calls for financial support for fishermen struggling to survive after mass crustacean deaths off the Teesside coast.
The Tory mayor has written to Environment Secretary Thérèse Coffey to ask the government to step in with financial support for the fishing community, who yesterday (January 20) told how they’ve been struggling to make a living with depleted sea life stocks following mass crustacean deaths.
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On Saturday The Northern Echo echoed calls from fishermen at the centre of the die-offs not to be forgotten as they asked ‘What about us?’, after a report into the deaths was published.
In the letter Mr Houchen said: “Since the initial die off incident, I have written on multiple occasions to the previous Defra Minister, George Eustice MP […] to highlight the need for support for our fishing communities in the wake of this natural disaster that has devastated their industry.
“Government has previously acknowledged that our local fishing industry has been put under enormous pressure due to this event and I am calling again for support from Government to be expedited to the fishing community to assist their necessary recovery – they are an important and vital part of our Teesside workforce and heritage, and I will always stand by their requests for positive assistance.”
I am calling again for support from Government to be expedited to the fishing community to assist their necessary recovery
Ben Houchen, Tees Valley Mayor
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On Friday (January 20) Hartlepool Fisherman Paul Graves told The Echo of the struggles he and fellow members of the fishing community are now facing.
“If my wife stopped working I would be screwed,” he said.
“I used to go two miles out and would never go more than six, but now I have to go 20 miles out to have any chance of catching anything.
“It’s hardly worth going out anymore. “
It came as a fresh report was unable to find a conclusive cause for the mass wash-ups.
The Crustacean Mortality Expert Panel (CMEP) said it was “exceptionally unlikely” dredging was the cause and backtracked on a previous Defra report which suggested the deaths were due to an algal bloom.
Wash-ups of dead crabs, lobsters and other sea life on the Teesside coast were first reported in October 2021.
A Defra spokesperson told The Northern Echo: "We are continuing to assess the economic impacts of this incident, including a comparison with landing data from previous years and with other parts of the country for the affected species.
"There are not currently plans in place to give compensation following the findings of this report."
Read Ben Houchen's Letter in full:
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