Brussels, 30/03/2016 (Agence Europe) - Harmonising penalties, strengthening the budget and role of the European Fisheries Control Agency, and establishing European training for inspectors - these are the main ideas set out in the draft report by Isabelle Thomas MEP (S&D, France) in terms of how to make fisheries controls in Europe homogenous.
The draft report, drawn up after a hearing on harmonising fishing controls (see EUROPE 11494), is due to be adopted in July 2016 by the European Parliament's fisheries committee.
Penalties. It is imperative that penalties are the same for all for the same offence and also that incentives are introduced, says Thomas. The creation of a judge specialising in maritime issues in each member state would be a first step in this direction. The draft report recommends the “harmonisation of penalties and prefers economic penalties (such as a ban on setting out to sea) to criminal penalties, but also recalls the need to introduce incentive measures for fishermen”.
Training. Thomas recommends setting up European training for inspectors by the European Fisheries Control Agency, based in Vigo, Spain. She suggests improving training and information for fishermen, which could be regulated by their professional organisations in order to improve understanding of the meaning and utility of the rules which would lead to a culture of respect. The setting up of online databases is recommended to make the rules visible and accessible to all, with the contribution of the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF).
Procedures and methods. The rapporteur says procedures need to be Europeanised and the role of the European agency needs to be boosted by increasing its resources and scope of action. It would be useful to let it intervene where it feels coordination would be most appropriate - in other words, for all fisheries whose catches concern species under maximum sustainable yield (MSY). Thomas says it is “incomprehensible” that the European Parliament is not represented at the Vigo agency and suggests that at least one European Parliament representative should join the agency's board (where there are six representatives of the European Commission and one representative for each member state).
The draft report recommends enlarging the inspections to the entire chain of production and granting responsibility for inspections at sea to a single administrative body “in order to avoid superimposing controls, which would generate pointless pressure”.
The draft report argues that a 'points licence' could be a useful European tool to penalise fishermen for serious infringements of the rules, but that without harmonisation, “it would make the already unfair system worse”.
Imported products. Finally, the draft report recommends equivalent controls for imported products, for fly-fishing and leisure fishing and also for the European fleet fishing in non-EU waters and non-EU fishing vessels fishing in European waters. It is suggested that exchange of information be made compulsory for unauthorised, undeclared and unregulated fishing. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)