French fishermen threaten action as Brexit licence talks drag

French fishermen are planning protest action against Britain's refusal to grant them more licences to operate in UK territorial waters, a fishing representative said on Tuesday, threatening to cut Britain's access to the EU's single market.

French fishermen are planning protest action against Britain's refusal to grant them more licenses to operate in UK territorial waters, a fishing representative said on Tuesday, threatening to cut Britain's access to the EU's single market. France and Britain have been at loggerheads for months over how many licenses French fishermen should get as part of a post-Brexit deal, with France accusing Britain of not handing out enough permits and Britain saying it is respecting the deal.

But with talks dragging on, fishermen have decided to take action said Olivier Lepretre, president of the business body that represents fishermen's interests in northern France. "Action is imminent," Lepretre said.

Without going into details of what form the action will take, he made clear that would affect trade, saying: "Britain wants to get access to the European market? They should give us the licenses. If not, we will cut their access."

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