Summary and Background Part 8: Enforcement Marine Enforcement Officers Section 239: Marine enforcement officers as British sea-fishery officers
637.Section 7 of the Sea Fisheries Act 1968 provides for the appointment of British sea-fishery officers (BSFOs). This section makes MEOs automatically BSFOs on appointment but provides that where MEOs are able to exercise common enforcement powers under the Act, they cannot use their BSFO powers. Thus MEOs may use BSFO powers where their MEO powers are not available to them (for example, in enforcing against a Scottish boat in Scottish waters which an MEO had not pursued under section 237(4)).