United Kingdom and Norway - fisheries consultations: agreed record for 2025

13. Scientific cooperation

13.1 The Delegations recognised the value in scientific cooperation and noted that their respective scientists have been successfully collaborating on issues of shared interest for many years. They agreed in 2023 to explore the potential to strengthen and formalise those bilateral working arrangements.

13.2 The Delegations recognised the progress made towards a Memorandum of Understanding between their respective institutions, the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture, and the Institute of Marine Research, and agreed to extend the deadline for its development until no later than the intersessional meeting for 2025. They also agreed to explore a state-to-state Memorandum of Understanding in the future. The Delegations also noted that there could be particular benefit in the Parties increasing their joint working on the science underpinning shared stocks.

13.3 The Delegations recalled that they agreed in 2023 that it would be in their joint interest to hold a joint industry-science workshop, to explore, inter alia, opportunities and priorities for research collaboration on surveys used to estimate the abundance and distribution of the mackerel stock, and other key pelagic stocks.

13.4 The Delegations welcomed the findings from the UK-Norway Science-Industry Workshop to Explore Collaboration on Science Information Needs for the Northeast Atlantic Mackerel Stock, held in April 2024 in Aberdeen, and presented to the Heads of Delegation at the intersessional meeting in June 2024 in Lerwick. It was agreed that the Delegations would invite industry and science representatives from the UK and Norway to develop proposals for 1) a pelagic trawl survey west of the British Isles (Area 6a) for 2-year-old mackerel, and 2) the re-analysis of existing acoustic data as a basis for potentially establishing an autumn/winter acoustic based survey on distribution and abundance for adult mackerel. The Delegations will consider proposals which include project costings, industry funding, and resourcing and will review progress at the intersessional meeting in 2025.