The European Parliament voted in Brussels on Thursday 2 February for a tougher, more transparent authorisation system for European vessels fishing in waters outside the EU, including under fisheries agreements with third countries.
The member states will be responsible for monitoring the authorisations but, should they fail to meet with their obligations, the Commission may step in and withdraw the licences, the amended text of the proposal states.
Parliament and the Council are expected to open negotiations around the month of March 2017 to try to reach an early first-reading agreement on the regulation on the sustainable management of external fishing fleets (see EUROPE 11684).
Parliament voted by 586 to 56, with 6 abstentions, to approve the report by Linnéa Engström (Greens/EFA, Sweden) containing changes to the version passed by the Parliamentary committee in relation to eligibility criteria (see EUROPE 11684). For the rest, the initial position was confirmed in plenary session.
Public register. A public electronic fishing authorisation register should be put in place and updated by the Commission. This register is to contain information on the International Maritime Organisation number of the vessels, and the names, cities and countries of the companies and beneficial owners.
Eligibility criteria. In the fisheries committee, an amendment for deletion of Article 5 of the proposal was passed. In plenary session, however, the amendment was rejected. Authorisation may not be granted if a vessel has incurred penalties for any serious infringement of the control or illegal fishing regulations in the previous twelve months. A penalty for a serious infringement, then, will be a criterion for non-eligibility for a fishing authorisation. An amendment put down by the Greens/EFA Group, adding a further criterion, was approved: “the master of the fishing vessel, as well as the fishing vessel concerned, have not been subject to a sanction for a serious infringement during the 12 months prior to the application for the fishing authorisation”.
Authorisation procedures. EU fishing vessels will need to obtain an authorisation from its flag member state to fish outside EU waters. This authorisation will be requested for all vessels fishing under the framework of a sustainable fisheries partnership agreement (SFPA) or under a direct authorisation issued by a third country through a private agreement, and also with fishing activities in areas beyond national jurisdiction under the auspices of a regional fisheries management organisation or on the high seas outside such arrangements.
Rapporteur Linnéa Engström hailed the tangible progress made in tackling overfishing. The EU, she argued, had to set an example and vessel owners will have to comply with the new obligations when applying for a fishing authorisation, and this includes having to prove that they have fished legally and that they have not registered their vessels in less strict countries.
Alain Cadec (EPP, France), who chairs the Parliament’s fisheries committee, welcomed the new framework which will make possible effective monitoring of European vessels operating outside EU waters. External fleets will be governed by a legal framework equivalent to that which applies in EU waters. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)