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UK SECURES ADDITIONAL £8 MILLION IN VALUABLE FISHING OPPORTUNITIES FOR 2026
December 29, 2025
UK secures additional £8 million in valuable fishing opportunities for 2026.
- UK fleet to benefit from over 1,000 tonnes in Arctic stocks in Norwegian waters, over 2,000 tonnes in Faroese waters, and 657 tonnes of North Sea herring in 2026
- The UK-Norway deal provides continuity for the UK fleet through access of up to 30,000 tonnes of key whitefish stocks, including cod, haddock, and hake, in Norwegian waters
- The UK has established a longer-term herring agreement with Norway, building on the mutual access arrangement of up to 20,000 tonnes in each other’s waters
The UK has secured bilateral fisheries agreements with Norway and the Faroe Islands for 2026, worth approximately £8 million in historic UK landing prices.
The agreements will grant the UK the same tonnage of Arctic stocks in Norwegian waters and of valuable stocks, including haddock and saithe, in Faroese waters in 2026 as for 2025, maintaining continuity for industry.
The deals transfer quota to the UK of over 1,000 tonnes in Arctic stocks and over 2,000 tonnes of stocks in Faroese waters, as well as additional North Sea herring quota.
Both agreements demonstrate the UK’s commitment to managing fisheries sustainably, supporting the long-term viability of stocks in the North Sea, and to cooperation with other parties on monitoring, control and surveillance.
The fishing opportunities and access arrangements the UK has secured through agreements with Norway and the Faroe Islands build on other fisheries deals signed with the EU and other coastal states earlier this month, bringing the UK’s total fishing opportunities for 2026 to around £840 million based on historic landing prices.
A Defra spokesperson said:
“These agreements deliver tangible benefits for our fishing communities and will bring in approximately £840 million in fishing opportunities for UK fishers in 2026.
“Providing stability and continuity for our fishing industry is vital so they can plan ahead, invest in their businesses, and continue supporting the coastal communities that depend on them.”
UK-Norway bilateral agreement
The UK has secured approximately £3 million in fishing opportunities, based on historic landing prices, through quota exchanges with Norway.
This includes fishing opportunities of Arctic stocks in Norwegian waters and an additional 657 tonnes of quota of North Sea herring, attained following the signing on 5 December 2025 of the landmark North Sea herring deal in the UK-EU-Norway trilateral negotiations.
Industry will benefit from secured continuity of access for UK vessels of up to 30,000 tonnes for whitefish stocks in Norwegian waters.
The UK has also established a longer-term herring agreement of up to 20,000 tonnes access in each country’s waters which will enable the UK fleet to fish Atlanto-Scandian herring in Norwegian waters.
UK-Faroe Islands bilateral agreement
The UK has secured over 2,000 tonnes of additional fishing opportunities in valuable Faroese stocks, worth approximately £5 million based on historic landing prices, following annual negotiations with the Faroe Islands for 2026.
The agreement remains stable with the arrangements from 2025, maintaining continuity for the UK fleet amid challenging scientific evidence for some key stocks in UK waters in the North Sea.
The agreement provides the UK fleet with quota in haddock, cod, saithe, blue ling, ling, redfish, flatfish and other species in Faroese waters.
- The UK-Norway Agreed Record is published and available to read on GOV.UK here: Fisheries: bilateral agreement with Norway for 2026 – GOV.UK
- The UK-Faroe Islands Agreed Record for 2026 is published and available to read on GOV.UK here: Fisheries: bilateral agreement with the Faroe Islands for 2026 – GOV.UK
- The fishing opportunities for UK fishing boats which reflect this agreement will be published in the Secretary of State determination of fishing opportunities for British fishing boats for 2026 in due course.
- These negotiations do not set catch limits, unlike other negotiations such as the UK-EU bilateral negotiations and UK-EU-Norway trilateral negotiations, as there are no stocks which are shared by the UK and Norway, or the UK and the Faroe Islands, bilaterally.
Negotiations breakdown in detail
As an independent coastal state, the UK negotiates with other coastal states each year to manage shared fisheries. These talks determine the total allowable catches (TACs) for around 100 fish stocks – setting limits on how much can be caught the following year based on the health and vulnerability of each stock and ensuring that fishing levels respond to the latest scientific advice about which stocks need protection and which can sustain higher catches.
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