Held British trawler sails free from French port

A French court ruled on Wednesday that a British trawler impounded by French authorities could sail for home, overturning an earlier demand that its captain pays a €150,000 ($174,000) bond.

The Cornelis Gert Jan was seized last week. French authorities said it had been caught fishing over 2 tons of scallops in French territorial waters without a proper license.

It left the French northern port of Le Havre just after 6 p.m. (1700 UTC) Wednesday. 

The lawyer for the ship's captain, Mathieu Croix, said a court in the nearby city of Rouen had allowed it to leave without posting any financial guarantee.

The vessel's captain, Jondy Ward, was also present in court for the hearing.

"It is a good decision, of a kind that will allow the tensions to drop," said the lawyer. "French justice is independent from political pressure," he added.

Ship used as 'political pawn'

Ward said earlier that the vessel was a pawn in a broader political argument between Paris and London over fishing rights after Britain's departure from the European Union.

Ship tracking website marinetraffic.com showed that the vessel was still moored on Wednesday evening in the French port of Le Havre, where it was impounded. Its declared destination was listed on the site as "FREEDOMMMM."

"We are obviously delighted and relieved that the vessel can leave and our crew can get home," Andrew Brown, a director of the trawler, told Reuters.

"We are also very pleased the courts have not set any bond for the release of the vessel. We are just relieved that the crew, who remain in good spirits, are able to head home," he added.

Trial set for next year

The French authorities had initially demanded the €150,000 bond in exchange for allowing the captain and the vessel to leave French jurisdiction pending a trial due in August of 2022.

France and Britain this week came to the brink of a cross-Channel trade war, with Paris alleging that London was denying fishing licenses to French trawlers that they were entitled to under a post-Brexit deal.

Britain said it was honoring the deal and accused France of blowing the affair out of proportion. Paris had threatened to step up checks on trucks and produce arriving from Britain and to bar British trawlers docking in French ports.

However, France pulled back at the last minute and now says it will make a new attempt to negotiate a solution with Britain. Senior British and French officials are set to meet for talks on the issue on Thursday.

lc/fb (AFP, Reuters)