In recent decades overfishing and conservation restrictions imposed by the European Union have caused a decline in the deep-sea industry. Fishing remains an important source of employment in many ports in Scotland and southwestern England. Even so, in the 1990s fishing accounted for less than 1 percent of the GDP and employed less than 1 percent of the workforce. Angling, or sport fishing, is one of the more popular hobbies in Britain.
As with agriculture, fisheries policy in Britain is largely determined by the EU through the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP). It aims to protect the remaining fish stocks in European waters so that they can recover from severe overfishing. There are strict quotas on the kinds and amounts of fish that may be caught, and regulations detail the appropriate equipment to use. The CFP has caused some hardship to the British fishing fleet, especially through restrictions on the number of days that ships are permitted to fish. The government and the EU have sponsored various schemes to assist economically pressed fishers, including buying and decommissioning fishing boats and offering financial incentives for fishers to leave the industry or go into fish farming. The government has also provided aid to improve equipment and port facilities.
At the start of 1996 traditional British and Irish fishing grounds, known as the Irish Box, were opened to Spanish ships on the basis of a 1994 agreement. The Irish Box is the area immediately north, west, and south of Ireland. An agreement was reached to limit Spanish access in this area to 40 vessels at any one time. Considerable friction between British and Spanish fishing vessels has occurred, leading to such incidents as net-cutting. In 1997 the British government imposed fines on the owners of Spanish fishing vessels for overfishing. Also, litigation between Spanish fishing vessel owners and British authorities over the legality of the 1988 Merchant Shipping Act was resolved in 1997 when the European Court of Justice ruled the Parliamentary act was illegal. The act stipulated that only vessels that were at least 75 percent British-owned could fish in British waters.
G Mining Mining has been enormously important in British economic history. Salt mining dates from prehistoric times, and in ancient times traders from the Mediterranean shipped tin from the mines of Cornwall. These tin mines are almost completely exhausted today, and the last tin mine in Britain closed in March 1998. Britain s abundant coal resources were critical during the Industrial Revolution, especially because the coal was sometimes conveniently located near iron and could be used in the iron and steel manufacturing processes. These mined resources were so important to the Industrial Revolution that entire populations moved to work at coal and iron sites in the north and Midlands of England. Today the iron is almost exhausted, and even though most good-quality coal seams are depleted, coal is still the third most mined mineral in Britain.
Besides coal, raw materials for construction form the bulk of mineral production, including limestone, dolomite, sand, gravel, sandstone, common clay, and shale. Some china clay and salt are also extracted. Small amounts of zinc, lead, tin, silver, and gold are mined. According to British law, the owners of land have title to the minerals below the surface. The only exceptions are gold, silver, oil, and natural gas, which the Crown owns and leases to producers. Mining and quarrying, including oil and gas extraction, accounted for 2.8 percent of the GDP in 1996 and employed 1 percent of the labor force.
H Manufacturing
The history of manufacturing in Britain is unique because of Britain s role as the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution. During the Middle Ages the production of woolen textiles was a key industry in Britain. In the 16th and 17th centuries, new industries developed. These included silk weaving, garment making, and the manufacturing of hats, pottery, and cutlery. All of these operations were generally conducted in small craft shops and were labor-intensive.
In the 18th century a number of changes in British society prepared the way for the Industrial Revoution. Colonial and commercial expansion created markets in North America, Africa, and parts of Asia. Coal and iron