The European Commission adopted on 8 July a proposal to amend the Regulation on the EU-Morocco fisheries agreement to take into account the withdrawal of the UK from the EU as of 1 January 2021.
The proposal withdraws the fishing possibilities that were foreseen for the UK in category six (industrial fishing for pelagic species) of this EU/Morocco arrangement, and reallocates them to vessels from the other EU countries concerned.
The proposal contains details of the new fishing possibilities according to the different categories under the EU/Morocco fisheries agreement.
The proposal amends the 2019 Regulation “so as to redistribute the UK’s fishing opportunities among the Member States benefiting from fishing opportunities in the same category in proportion to Member States’ allocations”, according to the text submitted by the Commission.
On 4 March 2019, the Council of the EU had adopted Decision 2019/441 on the conclusion of the Sustainable Fisheries Partnership Agreement between the European Union and the Kingdom of Morocco. The four-year protocol provides fishing opportunities for 128 EU vessels. The annual financial contribution paid by the EU amounted to 37 million euros in the first year and then increased to 42.4 million euros (see EUROPE 12206/24).
Link to the Commission proposal: https://bit.ly/3kajx1h (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)