Jeremy Corbyn says Nigel Farage and Brexit flotilla should 'stop blaming Brussels' for fishing industry problems

'Reforms were made three years ago actually put the power back into the hands of member states'

(Getty Images)

Jeremy Corbyn has urged people to stop "blaming Brussels" as Nigel Farage led a flotilla of boats down the Thames to protest the issues with the fishing industry.

The Labour leader was speaking during Prime Minister's Questions on Wednesday lunchtime, and he brought up the bizarre display taking place on the river outside.

Mr Farage said the boats were there because "we want our waters back", saying: "EU membership has destroyed our industry."

But Mr Corbyn said it was the Government who had given the majority of its fishing quota to just three large companies, at the expense of small fishing enterprises.

He said: "You will be very well aware that reforms that were made three years ago actually put the power back into the hands of member states and it's the UK Government that has given nearly two-thirds of the English and Welsh fishing quotas to just three companies.

"Thus excluding small fishing communities all along our coasts.

"Can you stop blaming Brussels on this and tell us small-scale and sustainable fishing communities what action you will take to allow them to continue their work and indeed go further out in collecting fish?"

David Cameron said the UK fishing industry had grown by around 20% thanks to Government reforms, and insisted it would be hit with tariffs on the sale of fish if Britain pulled out of the EU.

The Prime Minister said: "We export every year about a billion pounds worth of fish to the EU, and there is no country in the world that has a trade agreement with the EU that doesn't involve tariffs, taxes, on the sale of its fish,so there's no way we would get a better deal from the outside than the deal we get on the inside."

Speaking while his flotilla clashes with rival boats led by Sir Bob Geldof and the Remain campaign, the Ukip leader said: "The governing principle of the common fisheries policy is that of 'equal access to a common resource'.

"Fish stock that should be within the UK's internationally-recognised territorial waters is now shared with our European partners.

"This has led to a 60 per cent drop in oversized landings and the loss of tens of thousands of jobs in our industry."

Jobs were also being lost in the charter angling fleet due to new EU regulations on recreational sea angling, said Mr Farage, who said that Norway, outside theEU, was able to control stocks up to 200 miles off its shores and had a "booming" commercial fishing and angling industry.