Northern Shelf Mackerel Fisheries Management Plan

Executive Summary

The Northern Shelf mackerel Fisheries Management Plan (FMP) is one of 43 FMPs set out in the Joint Fisheries Statement (JFS). It has been developed by the Scottish Government, the Welsh Government, the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA) and the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) with input from industry, scientists, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), and Statutory Nature Conservation Bodies (SNCBs).

This FMP sets out the policies and actions to manage the Northern Shelf mackerel stock at sustainable levels, ensuring that it can continue to play a key role in providing positive socio-economic benefits to the UK, whilst also setting out a number of actions to improve management where this is needed.

Whilst the name of this FMP refers to ‘Northern Shelf’ mackerel, the most commonly used name for this mackerel stock is North East Atlantic (NEA) mackerel, and therefore that term is used throughout this document.

This FMP relates to NEA mackerel (Scomber scombrus) which consists of the NEA mackerel fishery in UK waters covering the ICES areas 2.a, 4, 5.b, 6, 7.a, 7d--h, 7.j, and 12.b.

Overall management of this fishery is shared with coastal State partners. This international context is important to understand when considering sustainability and wider management issues. Fishing opportunities for NEA mackerel are managed by total allowable catches (TACs). The setting of TACs can be an effective way of managing fishing pressure on fish stocks. TACs and other joint management measures are agreed through international negotiations which are guided by the best available scientific advice, whilst also balancing environmental, social, and economic factors. The principles followed by the UK in relation to international fisheries negotiations are laid out in the JFS under section 4.2.

NEA mackerel are a pelagic species caught mainly as part of a directed pelagic fishery within UK waters and also outwith UK waters. NEA mackerel is a commercially important species within UK waters, with the landed value by the UK fleet reaching £394 million in 2024.

The NEA mackerel stock is currently assessed as being under pressure. This reflects the cumulative effect of fishing by multiple coastal States on a widely distributed and jointly managed stock.

While the UK manages its NEA mackerel quota in line with domestic objectives, the overall sustainability of the stock depends on effective international cooperation. This FMP therefore describes a vision with policies and actions that focuses on ensuring that UK NEA mackerel fisheries operate responsibly within that shared management framework, while supporting efforts to improve overall stock sustainability. It highlights areas that could lead to refinements to management approaches in the future. Areas for action include those which support the wider delivery of policies within the JFS and which contribute to the delivery of the objectives contained within the 2020 Act.