Latest news with #SuttonHarbour
BBC News
07-07-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Broken Plymouth harbour gates costing fishers 'up to £2k a day'
Fishing businesses are calling for urgent repairs to the lock gates at Plymouth's Sutton Plymouth Fishing & Seafood Association said fishers were losing between £1,200 to £2,000 a day because the problem reduced the time they had to fish and land MP Luke Pollard has called on the Environment Agency to take urgent action to fix the gates and prevent further Environment Agency said repairs were a priority and work would start on Monday. Edward Baker, CEO of Plymouth Fish and Seafood Association, said the broken gates meant access to the harbour was restricted to just one or two hours over each high tide."You get a short window to get in and out of the harbour which severely restricts fishing times."Some people are only getting to sea for a few hours. Others are coming back and they can't get into the harbour so they have to wait outside, possibly for six hours." 'Landing in Looe' Mr Baker said fishers were losing between £1,200 to £2,000 a day. "It's a substantial amount of money because either they can't fish or they've come back expecting to be able to get into the harbour and they can't so the fish spoils on board the vessel."He said the problems were made worse by the closure of the fish market in Plymouth last year. Now all catches have to be transported to Brixham."If you miss the truck to Brixham then your fish is delayed two or three days before it gets to market, he said. "Some vessels are actually going and landing in Looe but then they've got to send their crew back to Plymouth where they live and the crew then have to get back to Looe for 3am in the morning to sail again." Luke Pollard, the Labour MP for Plymouth Sutton and Devonport, said he had written to the CEO of the Environment Agency calling for urgent action to fix the lock gates."Ever since I was elected, I've been campaigning to get these lock gates properly fixed. Time and time again they have broken, with it taking many months to fix," he said."We need a long-term solution to fix these gates, because every time they break it's fishers who suffer."That's why I'm calling for urgent action from the Environment Agency so that fishers can plan for what is happening, and a proper long-term solution so that the gates are properly fixed this time." An Environment Agency spokesperson said fixing the lock gates was a priority. "This structure has a vital role not just for the fishing community but the wider Plymouth area as a flood defence," they said."A submersible drone was used to rule out underwater damage, but divers will be needed to jack up the gate to begin repair work on Monday. The gates are expected to be operational before spring tides at the end of next week."Unfortunately, the footbridge over the gates between the Barbican and aquarium areas is not available while we carry out the repair and we thank the community for its patience while these essential works are completed."The agency said the gates had received significant funded maintenance in the past three years and had worked hard to deliver the maintenance around the activities of the harbour and its said the lock gates operated in challenging marine conditions and inevitably some parts were "prone to wear and tear" and "stopped working despite planned preventative maintenance".
Yahoo
23-06-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Fishing boat with striking mural sinks in harbour
A fishing boat painted with a striking mural, which became a tourist attraction in Plymouth, has sunk. The vessel, which was built in 1961 and has been moored in Sutton Harbour for over a year, was illustrated with local attractions. Plymouth artist Kevin Preston told BBC Radio Devon that he and the boat's owner, Neal Stoneman, were "absolutely gutted" and they hoped it could be recovered on Tuesday. Footage and photos of the incident filmed by people in the Barbican area was widely shared on social media. Mr Preston said the boat had become a local attraction, adding that some of his friends from as far afield as Scotland had travelled to see it while on holiday. Illustrations painted on the vessel include the Hoe, Tinside Lido, Drake's Island, Mount Batten Pier, the coast of South East Cornwall, Plymouth Sound and Jennycliff Bay. Neal Stoneman said he had received a phone call alerting him to the incident at around 20:45 BST on Friday. He said by the time he got there he was told by the dock manager that "there was nothing that could be done at that time" and that he should come back on Saturday morning. When asked what might have caused the boat to sink, he said he had "no idea whatsoever because the boat's been there for 18 months now with not a problem". He said he hoped a team of divers could refloat the 26ft vessel and take it back to a boat storage facility in Plymouth on Tuesday. More news stories for Devon Listen to the latest news for Devon Follow BBC Devon on X, Facebook and Instagram. Send your story ideas to spotlight@ Artist appeals for return of missing WW2 mural
BBC News
23-06-2025
- General
- BBC News
Plymouth fishing boat with striking mural sinks in harbour
A fishing boat painted with a striking mural, which became a tourist attraction in Plymouth, has vessel, which was built in 1961 and has been moored in Sutton Harbour for over a year, was illustrated with local artist Kevin Preston told BBC Radio Devon that he and the boat's owner, Neal Stoneman, were "absolutely gutted" and they hoped it could be recovered on and photos of the incident filmed by people in the Barbican area was widely shared on social media. Mr Preston said the boat had become a local attraction, adding that some of his friends from as far afield as Scotland had travelled to see it while on painted on the vessel include the Hoe, Tinside Lido, Drake's Island, Mount Batten Pier, the coast of South East Cornwall, Plymouth Sound and Jennycliff Stoneman said he had received a phone call alerting him to the incident at around 20:45 BST on Friday. He said by the time he got there he was told by the dock manager that "there was nothing that could be done at that time" and that he should come back on Saturday asked what might have caused the boat to sink, he said he had "no idea whatsoever because the boat's been there for 18 months now with not a problem".He said he hoped a team of divers could refloat the 26ft vessel and take it back to a boat storage facility in Plymouth on Tuesday.
BBC News
21-05-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Last remaining Plymouth fish market assets go to auction
The remaining assets of Plymouth's fish market have gone up for auction as fish merchants say hopes of reviving it appear to be over. Plymouth Trawler Agents (PTA), which ran the market for 30 years, ceased trading in May last year, and no other operator has come forward.A feasibility study in April found the reinstatement for fish auctions at the market would be "unviable" without significant Goodacre, from the Plymouth Fishing and Seafood Association, which was working to come up with a plan for the future, said the auction marked the end of the fish market "as we know it". More than 100 lots are up for auction, ranging from vehicles to processing equipment and thousands of branded fish took place earlier on the fish quay at Sutton Harbour, with potential buyers circling ahead of Thursday's Netherton, of Brixham Trawler Agents, said: "It's sad times but we'll try and make use of the stuff we can." Alison Pessell, former owner of PTA, agreed it was a "sad day" for the fishing industry. "The story for the fishing industry is pretty grim at the moment," she added."The latest EU news hasn't helped. We'd held out for a glimmer of hope that 2026 might bring some hope to the industry, but it's not looking very good."Labour ministers recently agreed a 12-year deal which extends existing access for EU boats in exchange for reduced checks and restrictions on food agreement was described as "disastrous" by the Scottish Fishermen's Federation (SFF). But despite dwindling belief Plymouth's fish market could be revived, Mr Goodacre said there was still cause to be optimistic. "We're optimistic that we can stay here and make this a centre for fish... where fish is still being landed, even if it's being sold a little way up the road," he said.
