A SCOTS fishermen's group chief has said it was lucky nobody was killed as a violent row erupted between French and British fishermen over scallops.

The UK government has said it is talking to French authorities to ensure there will be "no repeat" of clashes in which French fishermen have been accused of endangering lives.

It is alleged French fisherman threw smoke bombs, rocks and other projectiles at Scots and English boats on Monday,  with holes reported to have been left in some vessels.

Around 40 French boats are said to have confronted around a dozen British vessels in the waters of Baie de Seine, off the Normandy coast. The French say their British counterparts are depleting scallop stocks in the area.

The European Commission urged France and Britain to find an "amicable" solution.

Environment Secretary Michael Gove said the government was talking to French authorities to ensure there was "no repeat" of the clashes.

And Prime Minister Theresa May called for an "amicable solution" to the row.

"It's what we want and it's what France wants and we will be working on that," she said.

Mike Park, chief executive of the Scottish White Fish Producers Association said the actions of French fishing boats were comparable to "high-seas piracy designed to cause destruction" and said the French had agreed to a request for talks.

"At sea there is always the threat that the smallest incident can lead to loss of life and it's extremely fortunate that no one lost their lives or was seriously hurt," he said.

"We have emailed French colleagues and pleaded for an end to this messy affair.

READ MORE: French and British boats clash in Channel scallop war

"They have responded positively and we are now in the process of setting an early meeting in Paris tomorrow to begin to resolve this dispute."

One of the British vessels, The Golden Promise, reportedly had a window smashed while another suffered fire damage after a flare was thrown during the skirmishes.

A video published by French media purports to show a Scottish scallop dredger colliding with French vessels.

UK boats are allowed to fish in the Baie de Seine waters most of the year but, under rules imposed by France, their own fisherman are only permitted to harvest scallops between 1 October and 15 May.

Dimitri Rogoff, head of a Normandy fishermen's association, said the violent scenes "demonstrate the exasperation of Normandy fishermen in a situation which persists and does not change".

"I urge everyone to avoid these situations that endanger men's lives," he said.

But Mr Park denies that British boats were overfishing the area.