Experts have warned Britain risks “fishing our future away” as overfishing drives shortages in stocks including cod and mackerel.
New data from the government’s marine science agency the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (Cefas) shows internationally-agreed catch limits to ensure sustainable stocks exceeded scientific advice in 58 per cent of fish populations.
Conservation charity Blue Marine (BM) has accused the government of sacrificing the long-term future of vital fish stocks around the UK coast “for the sake of short-term political gain”.
Jonny Hughes, Blue Marine’s fisheries policy lead said: “Scientists, conservationists and many inshore fishermen have long warned that current management approaches are failing to halt the decline of critical species. Despite this, the government has repeatedly resisted necessary sustainability measures.”
He added: “We are not just mismanaging our seas anymore, we are quite literally fishing our future away.”
Data from Cefas shows out of 79 catch agreements, 31 were considered to be set in line with the scientific advice (39 per cent), two could not be scored and 46 failed (58 per cent).
Analysis also showed the number of agreements passing the sustainability assessment decreased from 35 in 2025 to 31 in 2026.
BM said declining cod populations give a stark representation of the crisis. Over the last decade, the Celtic Sea cod population has declined by 96 per cent, but catch limits continue to permit catches equivalent to nearly the entire remaining adult population, it said.
The charity added mackerel populations have also suffered alarming declines, with numbers around UK waters falling by roughly 76 per cent over the past decade.
Earlier this year the International Council for Exploration of the Sea (ICES) advised a 70 per cent reduction in catches for 2026 across all regional mackerel stocks compared to 2025’s recommended levels.
ICES warned the species, and the wider fishing industry, could face long-term risks unless countries stick to recommended catch limits.
Supermarket giant Waitrose said it would remove mackerel from its shelves by April 29 in a bid to cut down on overfishing of at risk species.
Last week, customers were urged to “completely avoid” buying UK-caught cod by the Marine Conservation Society (MCS) as it warned there is no sustainable way to eat the declining species.
Publishing its Good Fish Guide, which helps shoppers make sustainable choices, the MCS also said customers should also avoid trawled scampi.
It comes as the government announced its Fisheries and Seafood Scheme (FaSS), which pledges to commit around £132m to supporting coastal projects and businesses over the next five years.
Kerry Lyne, Good Fish Guide Manager at the Marine Conservation Society, said, “It’s concerning to see that progress in protecting our fish stocks has stalled. Fewer UK quotas that specify catch limits are aligning with scientific advice than in previous years.
“This is reflected in our Good Fish Guide, where some recent ratings show a decline due to quotas being set above scientific recommendations, including for well-known species like cod and mackerel. The UK Government must show stronger leadership on sustainable fisheries by supporting fishing communities to move to low impact fishing types whilst adhering to scientific advice, strengthen Fisheries Management Plans and improve monitoring to secure the long-term future of our iconic fishing industry and protect our precious marine life.”
A Defra spokesperson said: “We are committed to restoring our fish stocks to sustainable levels and supporting the long-term viability of the UK fishing industry.
“Our approach to setting catch limits is based on the best available scientific advice and we continue to work with other countries to reduce fishing pressure and strengthen management of stocks.”
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