Replacing Guernsey fisheries vessel to cost £2.6m

The report said in the past 19 years fines handed down from Bailiwick courts for fisheries-related offences totalled about £500,000

A replacement for Guernsey's ageing fisheries patrol vessel will cost £2.6m.

The Leopardess is used by Sea Fisheries to enforce fishing laws in Bailiwick waters and came into service in 1998 with a 20-year lifespan.

The vessel is also used by Guernsey Police, Guernsey Border Agency, Guernsey Renewable Energy and Guernsey Electricity.

The States will vote on releasing the funding at its meeting next month.

The Leopardess not only patrols Bailiwick waters, but the English Channel and the south coast of the UK, in co-ordination with the Marine Management Organisation, to ensure fishing vessels have the appropriate licences.

It is also used in search and rescue and can be called upon to assist with harbour operations.

The patrol vessel must be ready and capable to "act as a credible deterrent" to illegal fishing, according to the Commerce and Employment Department's report.

It said if the Leopardess was kept in service past 2016 it would need a major refit costing £500,000.