Keir Starmer ‘betrays Britain’s fishermen’ as PM ‘folds under EU pressure’ to give up UK fish for defence deal

Jacob Rees-Mogg has blasted the European Union, saying they should “stop complaining and pay us for defence.” His comments came after it was revealed that Prime Minister Keir Starmer might be close to giving away Britain’s fishing rights in exchange for a deal with the EU on defence.

The new defence deal could give the UK access to a massive €150 billion EU fund aimed at helping countries strengthen their military forces faster. That might mean UK companies could apply for big contracts under the EU system. But critics are calling this a “Brexit betrayal,” especially if it comes at the cost of British fishing waters.

According to The Sun, someone close to the government said that if the choice is between fishing—a relatively small industry—and defence, which is much bigger, then the government should go with the larger one.

The idea has outraged leading Conservatives and Brexit supporters. Jacob Rees-Mogg warned that the government must not “flounder” and betray fishermen again, adding that the EU should be paying the UK for its defence support instead of demanding more concessions.

Steve Baker also slammed the idea, calling it “another lose-lose deal” for the UK. He said the EU stands to gain in both defence and fishing, and giving up more fishing rights would go against what Brexit was supposed to stand for.

This story seems to clash with a recent report in the Daily Mail where an EU source claimed that “even Macron wouldn’t be foolish enough to let fishing get in the way” of including the UK in the EU defence strategy.

But in Brussels, it seems the opposite is happening. Reports suggest France, along with Denmark, is pushing hard for a deal that trades fishing access for defence cooperation. Sandro Gozi, a close ally of Macron and one of the key voices on Brexit matters in the European Parliament, has said the UK must settle the fishing issue if it wants to rebuild trust with the EU.

The current fishing deal between the UK and EU ends next year under the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA), which currently lets both sides fish in each other’s waters based on quotas. Just last December, the UK agreed to a £310 million deal with the EU and Norway to fish for species like cod, haddock, and herring in the North Sea.

Labour had previously shown some flexibility on the issue of fish, but until recently, they weren’t expected to trade it directly for a defence deal. However, according to The i newspaper, some Labour MPs now believe that a defence deal with the EU is almost finalized. One MP even said they’d heard a deal had already been agreed at the technical level, though not yet confirmed by top politicians.

Sources say that under the new agreement, Britain would likely be part of the EU’s €150 billion defence fund—but only if British firms are willing to work alongside EU partners.