A Free Pass to 'Ghost Fishing'?

'Ghost fishing' is the entangling and killing of fish, marine mammals and seabirds by abandoned fishing gear. Nets can, of course, be accidentally lost overboard. George Monbiot has, however, received worrying photographic evidence from a Scottish trawlerman. It appears that many of the 'ghost nets' are deliberately dumped (https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2022/jan/19/dumped-fishing-gear-killing-marine-life-governments-care-scottish-trawlerman-nets). Monbiot notes that many of the nets have had useful items, like floats, cut off them. Accidental losses would not have this characteristic. The trawlerman's claim is that some large (foreign?) trawlers illegally dump worn-out nets along, with their general waste, to maximise the size of their catch. These boats dump the materials outside territorial waters returning to port with zero waste. Monbiot is incensed that no government authorities seem to care about this practise. When questioned, authorities claim they have no data. Monbiot thinks they actually have no interest in controlling this behaviour.