Brussels, 16/12/2014 (Agence Europe) - In late afternoon on Tuesday 16 December, EU fisheries ministers were moving towards political agreement on the levels of total allowable catches (TACs) and quotas for 2015.
As we went to press, the Italian Presidency was putting a second compromise text to ministers.
The first compromise text from the Italian Presidency, brought forward at 11.30am, allowed some progress to be made but not enough for agreement to be reached (it was rejected by fishing states such as Spain, France, the United Kingdom and Ireland). This first compromise provided for: - a quota of 25,000 tonnes for French-Spanish anchovy (season beginning in January rather than July); - a 5% increase for Iberian anchovy (9,217 tonnes); - no change for cod in the Kattegat; - a 26% reduction (5,072 tonnes) for Celtic Sea cod (initially the Commission had proposed a 64% cut) with fishermen having to use more selective nets; - no change for megrim in the Celtic sea and in the Bay of Biscay (but a 43% cut off Portugal); - retention of the TAC for yellowtail and flounder (18,434 tonnes); - retention of the TAC for monkfish (including 33,516 tonnes for the Channel and the Celtic Sea); - a reduction of 29% for Celtic Sea haddock (rather than the 41% cut in the initial proposal); - no change in the northern hake TAC (81,856 tonnes, though Spain was looking for a 13% increase); - a 7% cut for Channel and Celtic Sea langoustine; - a 10% reduction for Bay of Biscay langoustine (an 18% drop had been proposed); - retention of the TAC for saithe; - a 10% reduction for ray (undulate ray by-catch tolerated); - a 3% cut for North Sea mackerel; - a 45% reduction for sole in the Eastern Channel (technical measures to reduce mortality); - retention of the TAC for sole in the Bay of Biscay (3,800 tonnes). The United Kingdom was authorised to land spurdog and discussions were held on a management plan for seabass (including a monthly limit of 5 tonnes per trawler).
Ministers took stock of the discard ban (after trialogue talks which were not entirely successfully concluded though they will resume shortly). They adopted, without debate, the regulation on the 2015 and 2016 TACs and quotas for deep-sea species (following political agreement in November) and the texts of the EU-Cape Verde and EU-Madagascar fisheries agreements. Lastly, Belize was removed from the list of third countries which are not doing enough to tackle illegal fishing (removal from the list of so called non-cooperating countries). (LC)