Something fishy

Maybe I'm just being cynical, but a report from Newcastle University, which says that fishermen in the North Sea should play a "stewardship role" in managing the resource strikes me as just plain daft. For years, fishermen have been their own worst enemy, ably assisted by craven politicians and even weaker policy wonks. Scientists know how to manage fisheries. They also know how to manage fisherfolk. But without some sort of ownership (and not the sort of fatuous ownership that emerges from stakeholder consultations and "buy-in") the fishermen have absolutely no incentive to manage anything. They're doomed.

Rather like the fish.