This assessment is for the brown crab fishery beyond 6nm in the Irish Sea, in England. Some national management measures are in place, however, they are not effective in managing the stock.In the offshore fishery, there are some management measures in place, but there are no catch limits in place to prevent overexploitation. There is no limit on creel numbers, no spatial controls and no Total Allowable Catch (TAC) for either the fishery as a whole, or individual vessels. There are also no tools available to implement a harvest control rule to provide a quick management response to adverse trends in stock indicators.All vessels registered in the UK must have a domestic fishing vessel license to fish within the UK EEZ for sea fish that will be sold. No new licenses are being issued. All commercial vessels under 10m, with a shellfish license, are required to complete Monthly Shellfish Activity Return (MSAR) forms for the Marine Management Organisation (MMO). These must include the catch and retained weight each day along with the date, name of vessel, vessel registration number, gear type, area and port of landing. All vessels over 10m do not need to complete MSAR forms as they will be completing a logbook of catches. For all vessels, effort is reported as days fished, and not as pots fished.National legislation in England and Wales also prohibits the landing of berried and soft crabs. In addition, when using pots or creels, a maximum of 1% by weight of the total catch of brown crabs landed may consist of detached claws. For all other gear types, a maximum of 75kg of detached claws may be landed. In many areas, market preference can also have influence on the crabs which are landed, as those having an 'unclean' appearance, due to disease or discolouration, or those missing both claws, can be seen as unmarketable.In England, the minimum conservation reference size (MCRS) varies between 115mm and 160mm carapace width, depending on the area.The Western Waters effort regime limits the number of days at sea that UK vessels over 15 metres fishing for crabs and scallop in ICES Area 7 can have. The number of allowed days are detailed in each vessel's fishing license, and are not transferrable between vessels or years. Uptake is monitored monthly by the Marine Management Organisation and enforced by local fisheries management authorities. In 2023, there was only a 13% uptake of the allowable days for the crab sector (fishing for brown crab and spider crab). This is a decline from 44% in 2021 and 92% in 2019.The Marine Conservation Society views Remote Electronic Monitoring (REM) with cameras is one of the most cost-effective tools for providing reliable fisheries data and aiding informed management decisions. Fully monitored fisheries enhance collaboration, data accuracy, stock recovery, and reduce impacts on marine wildlife and habitats. However, the full potential of REM may only be achieved when it tracks fishing location and documents catch and bycatch, particularly where vulnerable species and habitats are at risk. As of January 2024, the EU is introducing a Remote Electronic Monitoring (REM) mandate for EU vessels, including CCTV cameras on vessels 18m or more that pose a potential risk of non-compliance, within the next 4 years. Across the UK, different approaches to REM are being taken and legislation is expected to be in place across all 4 countries within the next few years.The Fisheries Act (2020) requires the development of Fisheries Management Plans (FMPs) (replacing EU Multi-Annual Plans) in the UK. 43 FMPs have been proposed and are at various stages of development and implementation, these should all be published by the end of 2028. FMPs have the potential to be very important tools for managing UK fisheries, although data limitations may delay them for some stocks. It is also essential the UK governments define and adopt a standardised approach or model across the four nations to a universally defined FMP design, to ensure the consistence, quality and coherence of all the proposal FMPs.The Marine Conservation Society is keen to see publicly available Fishery Management Plans for all commercially exploited stocks, especially where stocks are depleted, that include:An overview of the fishery including current stock status, spatial coverage, current fishing methods and impactsTargets for fishing pressure and biomass, and additional management when those targets are not being met, based on the best scientific evidenceTimeframes for stock recoveryImproved data collection, transparency, and accountability, supported by technologies such as Remote Electronic Monitoring (REM)Consideration of wider environmental impacts of the fishery, including habitat impacts and minimising bycatchStakeholder engagementA crab and lobster FMP for English waters has been proposed, coordinated by Defra, in partnership with Seafish that incorporates this stock. At the time of writing, it is too soon to know whether proposed management measures will be effective in managing the stock. For more information about this FMP and expected progress and timelines, see https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/crab-and-lobster-fisheries-management-plan-fmp-for-english-waters.
