A two-week ceasefire between the United States and Iran, announced on 7 April, has brought a brief pause to the worst of the geopolitical turbulence that has driven global oil prices to multi-year highs. But with the Strait of Hormuz still effectively closed, Brent crude still well above pre-war levels, and fishing fleets across Europe sitting idle, the relief for fishermen is limited.
For fishermen on both sides of the Irish Sea, that assessment carries particular weight. Oil peaked at $118 per barrel on 31 March, compared with $70 at the outbreak of hostilities and $60 at the start of 2026. Red diesel prices across the UK rose by more than 73 per cent from pre-war levels, and marine diesel across the EU saw increases of between 22 and 85 per cent depending on location, according to a Mediterranean Advisory Council survey conducted in mid-March. Even with some price softening following the ceasefire announcement, pump prices will take two to three weeks to reflect any fall in crude, and the industry is clear that viability cannot return to a sector already under severe quota and cost pressures without direct, targeted government support.
Ireland: No Dedicated Fleet Aid, Seafood Taskforce Stalled
Ireland’s fishing fleet has now gone six full weeks without any dedicated fuel subsidy, despite repeated and escalating warnings from producer organisations that boats are on the verge of tying up permanently. The
Irish Government’s EUR 250 million energy support package, announced on 24 March, included excise cuts on diesel and petrol and a rebate scheme for hauliers. However, the fishing industry was excluded from any specific sectoral measure, and the Marine fuels used by fishing vessels were not covered by the excise reduction.
The National Inshore Fishermen’s Association (NIFA) has issued the starkest warning to date, accusing the Government of having completely ignored the inshore sector. NIFA chair Michael Desmond and vice-chair John Menarry said that many fishermen can no longer afford to go to sea, with several reporting that operating costs now exceed potential earnings. NIFA argued that the Government’s seafood task force, the body to which the industry was directed to bring its case for emergency assistance, has been effectively paused, with meetings delayed and no communication from either its chair or secretariat about those delays. The result, the association said, was that the fleet had no pathway to emergency support.
NIFA warned that Irish coastal communities were becoming ghost towns as boats sold up or sat idle, and called for meaningful financial support, the reopening of closed inshore fisheries and a fairer share of pelagic quotas.
John Lynch, chief executive of the Irish South and East Fish Producers Organisation (ISEFPO), said the situation was now critical. “If you want to keep boats at sea, to keep the market supplied, the Government needs to do something to subsidise the boats to keep them at sea,” he said. “A lot of boats are now on the verge of just tying up because they just can’t afford to fish with the cost of fuel.” Lynch noted that green diesel prices reached as high as EUR 1.28 per litre in some ports in early April, while the industry maintained that anything above EUR 0.89 per litre made fishing unviable.
Patrick Murphy, chief executive of the Irish South and West Fish Producers Organisation, warned that the consequences would extend well beyond the fleet. “This is not just about vessels. In towns such as Killybegs, Clogherhead and Castletownbere, when vessels tie up, processors, transport operators and local businesses all feel the impact,” he said. Murphy noted that the industry had already absorbed a series of shocks including Brexit quota losses, ongoing reductions in fishing opportunities and rising operating costs, and that a EUR 94 million loss in value at first point of sale from 2026 quota cuts had been piled on top.
At EU level, Minister for Marine Timmy Dooley attended the Agrifish Council in Brussels on 30 March and strongly advocated for emergency EU support measures for the fishing sector. European Commissioner for Fisheries Costas Kadis indicated that work was being done to examine what arrangements could be put in place. A Department of Agriculture spokesperson confirmed that any EU decision would then allow Ireland to consider further national measures, subject to available funding. As of 10 April, however, no such decision had been formally announced, and no direct fishing fuel aid had been confirmed in Ireland.
Separate to the fishing fleet’s difficulties, wider fuel protests erupted across Ireland on 8 and 9 April, with farmers and hauliers blocking O’Connell Street in Dublin and causing gridlock on major road networks including the M7, M50, M18 and N6. Taoiseach Micheal Martin ruled out any additional short-term measures beyond the existing EUR 250 million package, which senior ministers described as generous. Panic buying and blockades left parts of Cork facing severe fuel shortages by 9 April.
UK: Still No Fishing-Specific Support Package
The United Kingdom remains without any dedicated support package for its fishing fleet. As of 10 April, Chancellor Rachel Reeves had not announced any measures specifically for fishermen, and the UK Government had refused to commit to sectoral aid despite sustained pressure from industry bodies.
The National Federation of Fishermen’s Organisations (NFFO) continued to flag the severity of the situation. Chief executive Mike Cohen said the NFFO was receiving a significant volume of calls from vessel operators. “We are price takers; we don’t get to set the price of the commodity we sell, so we are very vulnerable to these sorts of changes,” he told Fishing News. He warned that if fuel costs exceeded expected returns, boats would be forced to tie up, crew would go unpaid and the effects would cascade through the wider supply chain. In Scotland, Elspeth Macdonald of the Scottish Fishermen’s Federation had earlier raised concerns over not just price but supply security, noting the UK’s high reliance on imported refined diesel.
The Northern Ireland fleet remained under exceptional pressure. Dr Lynn Gilmore of the Northern Ireland Fish Producers Organisation reported that dockside fuel prices in Kilkeel had risen from approximately 60p to around £1 per litre year on year, a near 67 per cent increase. That rise was landing on a fleet already facing Nephrops prices down from around £7.30 per kilogramme to £5 per kilogramme, leaving the economics of going to sea extremely difficult for many skippers. Gilmore said she was still fielding daily calls from operators questioning whether it was worth leaving port.
France: Port Blockades as Fishermen Demand Action
France has moved more decisively than the UK in offering fleet-specific support, but the measures announced have not prevented a sharp escalation in protest activity. The French government confirmed EUR 5 million in fuel subsidies specifically for the fishing sector in April, part of a broader EUR 70 million package for fuel-dependent industries. A rebate of EUR 0.20 per litre was introduced for April, along with the deferral of certain financial obligations for fishing businesses.
Despite those measures, fishing vessels in Brittany began halting operations in large numbers by 1 April. Major offshore fishing companies announced a coordinated stoppage, with several dozen trawlers tied up within 24 hours. The CRPMEM Bretagne described the move as a first warning shot for the wider French fishing industry and seafood supply chain, and called on both the government and the EU to introduce stronger and more targeted aid. Breton industry representatives noted that fuel costs now absorb more than 50 per cent of turnover for many vessels, particularly trawlers, which account for around one third of the Breton fleet and about 300 vessels.
By 7 April the crisis had escalated to port blockades. French fishermen staged a complete blockade of six commercial ports on Corsica, with haulier blockades already under way on the mainland in cities including Paris, Toulouse and Bordeaux. Corsican fishermen’s union spokesperson Joseph Sanna told France 2 television: “We’re at rock bottom. We’re really struggling to survive. If we don’t do something to save this small-scale industry, it will be the end of everything.”
Secretary of State for the Sea Catherine Chabaud said the entire government was mobilised to find immediate solutions and to build a more resilient sector less dependent on fossil fuels. However, the industry’s call was for aid directly calibrated to fuel price increases beyond a threshold of 70 cents per litre, applied at vessel level rather than company level, and the government’s EUR 5 million package for April fell considerably short of that ambition.
The Netherlands: Crisis Deepens
The Dutch fishing fleet has not recovered from the position reported in late March. Fishing organisations issued a joint statement confirming that a substantial part of the Dutch fleet remained tied up as of early April, warning that “in many cases, going to sea now leads directly to losses”. VisNed and the Dutch Fishers Union said the situation had moved beyond a temporary adjustment and was now creating serious risks for the continuity of the sector.
Durk van Tuinen of the Dutch Fishers Union said the basic economics of fishing remained broken at current fuel prices. Weekly fuel bills that were EUR 12,000 to EUR 13,000 before the war were still running towards EUR 30,000, roughly equivalent to the full landed value of a vessel’s catch. Belgium, which also operates beam trawlers in North Sea flatfish grounds, has faced similar difficulties.
Spain and Other EU Member States
Spain remains the most comprehensive government responder among EU fishing nations. The EUR 25 million fund for the commercial fleet, distributed based on vessel activity and fuel consumption, remained in place alongside a rebate of 20 cents per litre of professional fuel, reduced VAT on energy to 10 per cent, and a suspended fresh fish tax until 30 June. Italy had allocated EUR 100 million to support transport and fishing sectors, while Greece was reported to be finalising a multi-million-euro support package. According to the Mediterranean Advisory Council’s fuel crisis survey of 2 April, marine diesel prices in Greece had risen by as much as 80 to 85 per cent in island communities, the highest recorded increase among the EU member states surveyed.
EU Level: NWWAC Warning, Europêche Pushes for Emergency Framework
The North Western Waters Advisory Council (NWWAC) wrote to the European Commission on 26 March, warning that rising fuel prices linked to the Middle East crisis could trigger a new economic emergency for the EU fishing sector. The council said fuel prices were increasing exponentially, and that even moderate increases could severely undermine economic viability given fuel’s dominant share of vessel operating costs. It warned of growing risks including the potential forced exit from professional fishing activities, significant loss of income and reduced ability to supply the European market with fish.
Europêche continued to press Brussels for an emergency framework equivalent to that used after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, which had allowed member states to provide direct financial support to energy-affected businesses without triggering state aid rules. EU fisheries commissioner Costas Kadis indicated that work was ongoing to determine what arrangements could be activated, but as of early April novformal emergency mechanism had been confirmed at EU level.
Outlook: Fragile Ceasefire, Lasting Damage
The two-week ceasefire, if it holds, gives oil markets breathing room. Brent crude, having peaked at $118 at the end of March, fell back to around $94 on news of the agreement. But the Strait of Hormuz remains a contested waterway, the damage to Qatari LNG infrastructure at Ras Laffan is estimated to take three to five years to fully repair, and European gas storage entering the spring season was at historically low levels. Energy specialists warned that a prolonged closure of the strait could push oil towards $170 per barrel, a scenario that would roughly double the inflationary impact already being felt.
For fishing communities from Donegal to Dunmore East, from Kilkeel to Kirkwall, the question is not whether the ceasefire holds but whether their governments will act before the boats that are already on the verge of tying up do so permanently. The NFFO, NIFA, Europêche and national producer organisations from Spain to France to Ireland have all said the same thing: the crisis is severe, the window for action is narrow, and the supply of fresh fish to European consumers depends on what governments and Brussels decide to do in the coming days and weeks.
