Boris Johnson has not ruled out triggering the dispute mechanism against France as a row between the two countries over post-Brexit fishing rights escalates.
On Friday, France seized a British scallop trawler and threatened to block ports and increase checks on boats and lorries over the UK denying some boats a licence to fish in Jersey’s waters.
French President Emmanuel Macron raised tensions further with the UK after telling the Financial Times that the UK is risking its “credibility” after going back on commitments made to the EU with regards to fishing.
Speaking to Sky News’ Beth Rigby on Saturday ahead of the G20 summit in Rome, the PM reiterated that he will “do what is necessary to protect British interests” if ministers believe the French have breached the UK-EU trade agreement.
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UK-France fishing row intensifies
Addressing the diplomatic dispute, Mr Johnson admitted to Sky News that he is “worried” that the French may have broken the treaty with regards to fishing.
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Pressed on whether he could rule out triggering the dispute mechanism against the French next week, the PM added: “No, of course not, I do not rule that out.”
The dispute process would see a consultation period started, after which, if there is no solution found, an arbitration panel would be formed with compensation demanded or even the treaty suspended as punishment, according to the Commons Library.
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The row erupted after the UK authorities refused to give licences to 55 French fishing vessels to fish in UK waters because they believed they did not meet the requirements.
But the French claim the British are in the wrong and had threatened to make it difficult for UK fishers and lorry drivers in France.
Tensions escalated further after a British scallop trawler – named the Cornelis Gert Jan – was detained in Le Havre on Thursday.
Andrew Brown, head of public affairs for Macduff Shellfish, which owns the boat, said the charge “relates to fishing in French waters without a licence and that’s the bone of contention”.
“We believe we were fishing with a valid licence and the French authorities don’t,” he said.
As well as detaining the scallop trawler, France has also fined two other fishing vessels over the row.
Image: French President Emmanuel Macron came face-to-face with Boris Johnson at the G20 summit and will again at the upcoming COP26 climate conference
Mr Johnson said: “If another European country wants to break the TCA – the Trade and Cooperation Agreement – then obviously we will have to take steps to protect UK interests.”
“We are very keen to work with our friends and partners on all these issues,” he told Beth Rigby.
Pressed on whether the UK will launch a dispute settlement with France next week after Brexit minister Lord Frost told the EU on Friday that the UK government could launch proceedings if France goes ahead with its threats over the fishing row, the PM said: “If there is a breach of the treaty, or if we think there is a breach of the treaty of course we will do what is necessary to protect British interests.”
Asked if he believes there has been a rule-break, Mr Johnson said: “I am worried that there might be – and I am looking at what is going on at the moment, and I think that we need to sort it out.”
Image: Fishing boats moored in the port of Boulogne, France
Mr Johnson said the UK government “want to see that treaty observed”, but added that “the much more important issue” before world leaders today is climate change.
The PM and President Macron came face-to-face at the G20 summit in Rome this weekend and will do again at the COP26 climate conference in Glasgow.
Speaking on Friday, a Downing Street spokesman said Mr Johnson will have a “brush by” with the French president about the row at the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow, which starts on Sunday.
The spokesperson added that threats to “disrupt UK fisheries and wider trade, to threaten energy supplies… would put the European Union in breach of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement”.
Meanwhile, a letter seen by Sky News shows the French Prime Minister Jean Castex urging the EU to prove that there is “more damage to leaving the EU than to remaining there”.
In the letter to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, dated 28 October, Mr Castex states: “It’s essential to clearly show to European public opinion that respecting commitments isn’t negotiable and that it’s more damaging to leave the European Union than to stay in it.”
Mr Castex adds that the EU must demonstrate its “total determination” to force the UK to stick to the agreements it has made on fishing.
France says the decision from the UK and Jersey in September to deny fishing licences to French boats was a breach of the Brexit deal.
French officials have warned that they will prevent British boats from landing their catches in some French ports next week unless the row is resolved by Tuesday.
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Brexit: ‘These threats are not acceptable’
Speaking to Sky News on Friday, Environment Secretary George Eustice said the UK has issued post-Brexit licences to 1,700 vessels, including 750 French fishing boats, which amounts to 98% of applicants.
He said the remaining 55 vessels, despite the UK trying to help them with the data, could not prove they had fished in Jersey’s waters previously so could not get a licence under the trade and co-operation agreement with the EU.
Mr Eustice said: “We don’t know what we’ll do, they said they wouldn’t introduce these measures until Tuesday at the earliest, we’ll see what they do.
“But if they do bring these measures into place, well, two can play at that game and we obviously reserve the ability to respond in a proportionate way.”
The French ambassador to the UK was summoned to Downing Street on Thursday over the issue.
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The education secretary has said children with special needs will “always” have a legal right to additional support as she sought to quell a looming row over potential cuts.
The government is facing a potential repeat of the debacle over welfare reform due to suggestions it could scrap tailored plans for children and young people with special needs in the classroom.
Speaking in the Commons on Monday, Bridget Phillipson failed to rule out abolishing education, health and care plans (EHCPs) – legally-binding plans to ensure children and young people receive bespoke support in either mainstream or specialist schools.
Laura Trott, the shadow education secretary, said parents’ anxiety was “through the roof” following reports over the weekend that EHCPs could be scrapped.
She said parents “need and deserve answers” and asked: “Can she confirm that no parent or child will have their right to support reduced, replaced or removed as a result of her planned changes?”
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Sophy’s thought on whether to scrap EHCPs
Ms Phillipson said SEND provision was a “serious and complex area” and that the government’s plans would be set out in a white paper that would be published later in the year.
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“I would say to all parents of children with SEND, there is no responsibility I take more seriously than our responsibility to some of the most vulnerable children in our country,” she said.
“We will ensure, as a government, that children get better access to more support, strengthened support, with a much sharper focus on early intervention.”
ECHPs are drawn up by local councils and are available to children and young people aged up to 25 who need more support than is provided by the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) budget.
They identify educational, health and social needs and set out the additional support to meet those needs.
In total, there were 638,745 EHCPs in place in January 2025 – up 10.8% on the same point last year.
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One Labour MP said they were concerned the government risked making the “same mistakes” over ECHPs as it did with the row over welfare, when it was eventually forced into a humiliating climbdownin the face of opposition by Labour MPs.
“The political risk is much higher even than with welfare, and I’m worried it’s being driven by a need to save money which it shouldn’t be,” they told Sky News.
“Some colleagues are rebel ready.”
The MP said the government should be “charting a transition from where we are now to where we need to be”, adding: “That may well be a future without ECHPs, because there is mainstream capacity – but that cannot be a removal of current provision.”
Later in the debate, Ms Phillipson said children with special educational needs and disabilities would “always” have a “legal right” to additional support as she accused a Conservative MP of attempting to “scare” parents.
“The guiding principle of any reform to the SEND system that we will set out will be about better support for children, strengthened support for children and improved support for children, both inside and outside of special schools,” she said.
“Improved inclusivity in mainstream schools, more specialist provision in mainstream schools, and absolutely drawing on the expertise of the specialist sector in creating the places where we need them, there will always be a legal right … to the additional support… that children with SEND need.”
Her words were echoed by schools minister Catherine McKinnell, who also did not rule out changing ECHPs.
She told the Politics Hub With Sophy Ridge that the government was “focused on reforming the whole system”.
“Children and families have been left in a system where they’ve had to fight for their child’s education, and that has to change,” she said.
She added that EHCPs have not necessarily “fixed the situation” for some children – but for others it’s “really important”.
Victims will no longer have to “suffer in silence”, the government has said, as it pledges to ban non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) designed to silence staff who’ve suffered harassment or discrimination.
Accusers of Harvey Weinstein, the former film producer and convicted sex offender, are among many in recent years who had to breach such agreements in order to speak out.
Labour has suggested an extra section in the Employment Rights Bill that would void NDAs that are intended to stop employees going public about harassment or discrimination.
The government said this would allow victims to come forward about their situation rather than remain “stuck in unwanted situations, through fear or desperation”.
Image: Zelda Perkins, former assistant to Harvey Weinstein, led the calls for wrongful NDAs to be banned. Pic: Reuters
Zelda Perkins, Weinstein’s former assistant and founder of Can’t Buy My Silence UK, said the changes would mark a “huge milestone” in combatting the “abuse of power”.
She added: “This victory belongs to the people who broke their NDAs, who risked everything to speak the truth when they were told they couldn’t. Without their courage, none of this would be happening.”
Deputy prime minister Angela Rayner said the government had “heard the calls from victims of harassment and discrimination” and was taking action to prevent people from having to “suffer in silence”.
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Weinstein found guilty of sex crime in retrial
An NDA is a broad term that describes any agreement that restricts what a signatory can say about something and was originally intended to protect commercially sensitive information.
Currently, a business can take an employee to court and seek compensation if they think a NDA has been broken – even if that person is a victim or witness of harassment or discrimination.
“Many high profile cases” have revealed NDAs are being manipulated to prevent people “speaking out about horrific experiences in the workplace”, the government said.
Announcing the amendments, employment minister Justin Madders said: “The misuse of NDAs to silence victims of harassment or discrimination is an appalling practice that this government has been determined to end.”
The bill is currently in the House of Lords, where it will be debated on 14 July, before going on to be discussed by MPs as well.