He thought that the fishing industry could be stimulated immediately by renewing the fast days, which had fallen into disuse since the abolition of the monasteries.
He suggested that two days a week—Wednesday and Friday—should be meatless days.
In 1563, he tried a measure of Protection, a Navigation Act being passed, making it illegal to buy or sell foreign-caught fish, and attempts were made to prevent Dutch and other foreigners from fishing in English waters. These measures, although passed by Parliament, do not appear to have been enforced.
James I issued two proclamations, imposing licences and dues upon foreign fishing vessels fishing in British waters. No attention was paid to these, and it was left to Charles I, some years later, to enforce them. Other steps taken by both Charles I and Charles II consisted mainly in the formation of Royal Fishery Companies. Various fishery companies and societies succeeded one another up to the end of the eighteenth century. They do not appear to have been successful in establishing a flourishing fishing industry, and in 1718 (George I) an act was passed by which fishermen were to be rewarded for their catch by a bounty. Bounties were to be paid for several kinds of fish: thus, for every barrel of white herrings of 32 gallons, exported beyond the seas, the bounty was 2s. 8d.; for full red herrings, 1s. 9d. per barrel; for empty red herrings, 1s. per barrel.
The conditions upon which the bounty was to be paid were fully set forth in a later act in 1750 (George II). The construction of herring vessels was encouraged by a bounty of 30s. per ton, paid out of the Customs, for decked fishing vessels of from twenty to eighty tons.
The time and place of fishing were stipulated, as well as rules for the proper management and prosecution of the fishery. Each vessel was to have on board twelve Winchester bushels of salt for every last of fish such vessel was capable of holding, the salt to be contained in new barrels.
In 1757, the bounty was increased to 50s. per ton, but was reduced to 30s. again in 1771. It was further reduced to 20s. in 1787, and an additional bounty of 4s. per barrel added. This was made proportional to the tonnage, so that no vessel could claim more than 30s. per ton—unless the vessel caught over three barrels per ton, in which case a bounty of 1s. per barrel was granted upon the surplus quantity.
While the bounty often undoubtedly encouraged the development of the fishery, the development was not so rapid or so extensive as it would otherwise have been, owing to the duty on imported salt. The weight of the duty was such that the fishermen threw fish overboard rather than cure it, only landing that which could be brought in fresh.
In 1808 the bounty was raised to £3 per ton on every British built and British owned fishing boat of not less than sixty tons burden, properly manned, registered, and navigated and employed in herring fishing. The maximum tonnage on which the bounty was payable was one hundred tons. Two shillings per barrel was paid on properly cured and packed herrings.