The ban on the wasteful discards of healthy and edible fish at sea has failed, according to a Lords report. Despite its enormous popularity with the British public, the measure has been poorly implemented in the UK and the result is more fish being needlessly wasted.

The implementation of the discards ban has been “inadequate” according to Lord Teverson, speaking to the Guardian after a report on the issue that he co-wrote. A committee of the House of Lords criticised the government in a report for failing to put the ban into proper effect.

If the discard ban – which was the subject of a media campaign and petition to the House of Commons – had been properly put into effect, then fishermen would have been expected to land numerous small fish which were ineligible to be landed under the EU’s fishing laws.