BCP Horse Mackerel Review. Brakes on New Entrants

Three of South Africa’s largest fishing companies have launched a High Court review application to challenge the Minister of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries appeal decision in the horse mackerel sector. They want to put the brakes on the new entrant provisions of the MLRA (Section 2 (j) and Section 18 (5).

On 8 November, Blue Continent Products (Pty) Limited (BCP/Oceana), Sea Harvest Corporation Limited and Irvin & Johnson Limited launched a ground-breaking High Court review application in the Western Cape High Court. They are challenging the Minister of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries appeal decision in the horse mackerel sector taken on 24 May 2019.

In particular, they want the appeal decision set aside and referred back to the Minister and for the appeal decision to be declared unlawful insofar as it related to:

• The introduction of 30 new entrants into the horse mackerel fishery;
• The allocation of 62% of the TAC to such new entrants; and
• The DDG’s quantum allocation methodology which affectively reduced existing right holders allocations by the percentage of their white ownership.

Why is it ground-breaking one might ask?