Environmental law charity ClientEarth has warned that weak transparency rules around fishing vessel ownership are creating “systemic blind spots” in U.K. fisheries governance.
In its new report “Whose Boat Is This?” ClientEarth argues that the U.K. government doesn’t require a sufficient amount of disclosure regarding the ultimate beneficial owners (UBOs) behind many commercial fishing vessels operating in U.K. waters.
The organization said this risks undermining enforcement, seafood traceability, and confidence in fisheries governance.
According to the analysis, the United Kingdom has positioned itself as an international leader in tackling illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing, but fewer than 25 percent of the country’s largest commercial fishing vessels have ownership structures that are transparently identifiable. Most other fishing operations, the report said, have complex corporate arrangements and offshore entities that make it difficult to determine their ownership.
ClientEarth U.K. Lead Kyle Lischak told SeafoodSource that the current system in the U.K. reveals different degrees of UBO information depending on a vessel’s particular ownership arrangements, including none at all in some cases. This, he said, suggests an “uneven playing field” that could be at least partly addressed by having a consistent standard on UBO disclosure.
Lischak said more transparent disclosure of UBOs wouldn’t necessarily undermine the limited liability protections of company formation under current U.K. company laws. Rather, he said individuals could be held personally accountable if, for example, they are determined in the course of justice to have engaged in criminal activity.
Meanwhile, ClientEarth is warning that where vessel ownership can’t be traced, regulators cannot fully rule out links to organized crime, illicit financial flows, sanctioned entities, or hostile actors operating through opaque offshore structures. Its report also said the issue extends beyond fisheries management into national security, economic oversight, and public trust in seafood supply chains.
The report stressed that most U.K. fishers operate responsibly and comply with regulations but added that these legitimate businesses may be disadvantaged if opaque operators are able to avoid scrutiny. For instance, among many factors placing legitimate businesses at a disadvantage, opaque operators may contribute to overexploitation of marine resources and undermine sustainable fisheries management.
The report set out a series of recommendations aimed at closing governance gaps, with key proposals including:
- Requiring disclosure of ultimate beneficial ownership at both vessel registration and fishing license application stages;
- Publishing UBO information in a publicly accessible register;
- Lowering ownership disclosure thresholds to make it harder to conceal control through layered corporate structures;
- Strengthening enforcement of existing company disclosure requirements; and
- Restricting access to U.K. waters for vessels with opaque or unverifiable ownership
Ideally, these recommendations would be implemented by the government as a complete package, but the report stated they would also work if enacted on an individual basis.
ClientEarth clarified that the United Kingdom already possesses many of the legislative tools needed to implement these reforms, including existing company ownership rules, such as The Companies House Persons with Significant Control (PSC) system, and verification powers introduced through wider economic crime legislation.
Additionally, the U.K. supports the Global Charter for Fisheries Transparency – an international initiative promoting 10 principles for fisheries accountability, including UBO disclosure – on an international basis. However, Lischak said there are a number of areas within the charter where the country has lagged behind.
Alongside improvements to the Companies House PSC system, Lischak suggested changes could also be made to the vessel registration and fishing licensing systems in order for the United Kingdom to better and more effectively control IUU fishing in its waters and other areas where U.K. commercial vessels operate.
Collectively, these reforms would strengthen enforcement, protect U.K. fishers, and build public trust, Lischak said.
“The solution is practical and achievable with existing tools. It is now up to the U.K. to act,” he said.
ClientEarth’s report forms part of a wider campaign led by the Coalition for Fisheries Transparency, a global network of more than 50 civil society organizations working to improve fisheries accountability and governance.
