'A shambles': No local fish over Easter as fishermen strike in Alderney mooring row

Serena Sandhu reports on the strikes in Alderney's fishing industry...

Fishermen in Alderney are refusing to land their catch at Braye Harbour in a row over mooring rights.

They say the States' plans for a new pontoon will end up costing them more money, and are concerned that fishing boats will not fit in the new space.

It means there will be no local fish or shellfish ahead of the Easter weekend.

Fisherman Lewis Main is now leaving Alderney's waters for the south coast of England, and says the whole situation is 'a shambles'.

He says: "I think the pontoon will benefit the island but for the fishing industry it’s no good.

"A ladder would have been the ultimate resolution for it all, but we’ve had nothing at all, so we’ve got to make the most of what we’ve got, which isn’t acceptable either.

"For me Guernsey is my home, it’s sad – I have to either change my boat or the way I fish, which I'm not in the financial position to do."

Lynn Maurice, from Alderney's General Services Committee, says she had a "long talk with Mr Main and all the harbour officials, and he seemed to be quite happy at the time.

"The harbour office offered him closer mooring, they already have two permanent moorings anyway, but they seem to want to stay at the commercial quay all the time.

"There are no permanent moorings at the commercial quay and that’s the end of that."

According to Ms Maurice, the pontoon is being built for the safety of unloading passengers from small boats when they arrive in Alderney.

She says: "It is essential that they have a safe landing place, as when the planes aren't running properly we need the little boats a lot."

Fisherman Pierre Dupont also told ITV Channel that he believes the pontoon is too long.

He says if it would suit everybody better if it was 10 metres long, so there would still be two births to tie the bigger boats onto.