The Brexit Catch
June 18, 2026 at 10:02PMBrexit campaigners promised that once Britain left the EU, the British fishing industry would thrive. Did it ever happen? The answer Jack Burke finds is nuanced. No, there was no revolution, but neither did the dire predictions of Remainers fully come true. And, as it turns out, the real problems facing British fishing lie much closer to home. It’s time Britain looked to its own shoreline.
Brixham’s harbour is as picturesque as anywhere in England. A confection of pastel-painted cottages tumble down steep hillsides towards the water, their fishermen’s lofts and net stores long since transformed into holiday lets with names like Lobster Pot Cottage and Captain’s View. In summer, paddleboards and pleasure boats bob beside the marina. Tourists sit scoffing ice creams on the quayside where trawlermen once repaired their nets.
Fishing built Brixham. It was Brixham men who pioneered deep-sea trawling in the nineteenth century, taking their distinctive sailing trawlers around the coast and helping establish fleets elsewhere in Britain. In 1866, an easterly gale destroyed almost the entire fleet and killed scores of men, yet the town rebuilt itself. It remained one of Britain’s great fishing ports through much of the twentieth century, reaching its peak, as so many commercial fleets did, during the decades following the war.
from Longreads https://longreads.com/2026/06/18/brexit-britain-eu-fishing/
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