Cod war
Sir : Your otherwise admirable editorial on 15 May errs in accusing the Conservative Opposition of 'deplorable silence' over the 'cod war'. Please allow me to put the record straight. Far from remaining silent, we have repeatedly questioned and often criticised the Government's handling of the dispute. As early as December, Mr Maudling, our Shadow Foreign Secretary, stated that 'there is a growing concern that this matter is going off the rails altogether' and Conservative spokesmen have repeatedly called over the months for mediation.
The Opposition has acted responsibly in not seeking to pursue selfishly partisan interests by undermining the position of the British Government during a period of delicate diplomacy with Iceland, but at the same time we have sought to indicate the Government's shortcomings in their handling of the dispute. In particular, we have stressed that the Government should be paying more attention to renegotiating the EEC's Common Fisheries Policy, which is of much greater significance to the long-term interests of our fishing industry than the increasingly limited fisheries off Iceland.
However, as the dispute drags on, the Government show their increasing inability to master their responsibilities and place the cod war in perspective. Indeed, the cost to Britain of the battle with Iceland is becoming intolerable. The already hard-pressed fishing industry has lost several hundred thousand pounds in reduced catches, lost warps and damage to trawlers. The final cost to the taxpayer of paying for civilian defence vessels and repairs of the extensive damage to our Royal Navy frigates will be several million pounds. To this must be added the great loss to our diplomatic standing, the strains imposed on our overstretched Navy and the grave damage which would be caused by the possible withdrawal of Iceland from NATO.
For all this wastage of money and endeavour, it seems unlikely in the end that Britain will gain an agreement which allows our fishermen much above the 65,000 tons offered by Iceland and impatiently rejected by Roy Hattersley way back in November. The cost therefore far outweighs any conceivable advantage the Government may be able to sift from the wreckage of their cod war diplomacy.
While the Icelandic Government must also share the heavy burden of culpability for turning a disagreement into a disaster, is it too much to expect Great Britain to show magnanimity and understanding towards a small neighbour and staunch ally ? It is time for the Government to show a real spirit of compromise, not out of weakness but out of strength and common sense, and bring to an end an affair which has been destructive to both countries.
Richard Luce Cons MP for Shoreham Joint Secretary of Conservative Parliamentary Foreign Affairs Committee House of Commons, London SW1
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