Scientists say there should be 'zero' fishing for cod across UK

Scientists have again advised that there should be “zero” fishing of cod next year across vast swathes of sea around the UK amid growing concerns over the collapse of fish stocks.

The International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (Ices), which gives advice on maximum catches that would allow fish stocks to continue to be fished sustainably, released its latest recommendations on Friday.

It advised “zero catch” quotas be set in 2027 for all cod stocks in the “Northern shelf” – an area covering the English Channel, North Sea up to Norway and the west of Scotland.

Cod populations in these waters face serious declines after years of overfishing combined with the growing impacts of climate change.

Fishing quotas for the North Sea are set annually in political negotiations between the EU and coastal countries in the region, including the UK and Norway, with talks for next year’s limits currently taking place across October and November.

However, allowed catches are frequently set above the levels in the scientific advice.

For 2026, the majority of all quotas negotiated by the UK were not set in line with scientific recommendations, according to an official assessment by the Government’s Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (Cefas) released in April.

Last year, Ices similarly recommended a zero catch limit for 2026 for all cod stocks in the Northern Shelf.

But the UK, EU and Norway ultimately agreed the total allowable catch at 14,034 tonnes for the year – though it represented a 44% reduction on the previous year.

Hugo Tagholm, executive director of campaign group Oceana UK, said: “For yet another year, experts have issued a red alert over the severe risk of collapse of UK cod stocks.

“Scientists point to dangerously low numbers of breeding adults in the North Sea, and waters that have been robbed of young fish.

“In the English Channel, there are barely any cod at all.

“Year on year, our Government knew the limits, yet it ignored them. Year on year, they continued to play into the hands of a few wealthy corporations.

“These industrial titans are asset-stripping our seas for profit, and leaving nature-friendly fishers without livelihoods or a future.”

A group of 29 scientists from universities across the UK and abroad have also called on the UK Government to set catch limits in line with the scientific advice to safeguard fish populations, coastal communities and ocean wildlife.

The letter, sent to Environment Secretary Dame Angela Eagle, said the UK is among the “key contributors to setting total allowable catches above scientific advice”.