The European Parliament’s Committee on Fisheries votes, on Tuesday 24 October, on its recommendations for changes to the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP), adopting the draft report by Gabriel Mato (EPP, Spanish) on the current state of implementation of the CFP and future prospects.
Around twenty compromise amendments will be put to the vote on various CFP issues, in favour of adjustments to certain rules on maximum sustainable yield, landing obligations and quotas.
One of the compromise amendments stresses that the implementation of the CFP will have to adapt to the challenge of fighting climate change and that the CFP must continue to be implemented and, where necessary, be “reformed and adapted accordingly” (see EUROPE 13132/5).
MSY. One of the compromise amendments states that “for multi-specific fisheries, species management based on the Maximum Sustainable Yield (MSY) model is impossible to apply”. Following a broad consultation of stakeholders, MEPs could invite the Commission to examine the possibility of introducing fisheries management objectives that guarantee both optimum fish stock levels and optimum socio-economic performance of fleets.
The landing obligation (to stop discarding fish at sea) must be applied in a “pragmatic” manner, according to MEPs. “Quota swaps between Member States and between Producers’ Organisations, through quota pools, as well as technical and spatiotemporal selectivity, should be encouraged”, according to one of the compromise amendments. The application of the landing obligation, including its scope, should be reviewed in order to limit the problems of ‘choke species’ and complex derogations, say MEPs. This term refers to the problem of species caught as part of a targeted fishery for which there are few or no quotas.
On Total Allowable Catches (TACs), MEPs are expected to stress the need to improve scientific advice for mixed fisheries, also in light of the impact of climate change on the ocean, and to take into account catch composition and species movement when setting TACs. The European Commission and the EU Council will be asked to consider setting TACs for periods longer than one year, as also requested by the Spanish Presidency of the EU Council (see EUROPE 13254/11).
The MEPs are also expected to vote in favour of maintaining the principle of relative stability, whereas Mr Mato, the rapporteur, wanted to review this principle. The principle of relative stability, which is based in particular on historical catch levels, involves maintaining a fixed percentage of authorised fishing effort for the main commercial species for each Member State.
The European Parliament is expected to deplore “the lack of transparency” regarding the allocation of fishing opportunities in certain Member States and to call for the criteria to be made public, in accordance with the applicable data protection legislation.
MEPs are calling for changes to the current rules to ensure the energy transition of the EU’s fisheries and aquaculture sector: - redefine fishing capacity, for example by excluding safety and social tonnage from the calculation of fishing capacity; - increasing fishing capacity limits in terms of gross tonnage and engine power, without increasing the ability of vessels to catch more fish.
In addition, the European Parliament is expected to demand that in future compositions of the College of Commissioners, one Commissioner be exclusively dedicated to fisheries, aquaculture and maritime affairs.
The Commission and the EU Council could be invited to grant the European Parliament observer status during the annual negotiations on fishing opportunities in the EU Council.
The European Parliament Committee on Fisheries has issued a number of recommendations, notably on the role of producer organisations, generational renewal, ocean governance, imports from third countries and the fight against illegal fishing, outermost regions and recreational fishing.
Link to the compromise amendments put to the vote: https://aeur.eu/f/978 (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)