Brussels, 15/11/2000 (Agence Europe) - Fisheries Ministers, who are gathering this Friday in Council under the Presidency of Jean Glavany, must discuss and, in some cases, adopt a common orientation on several dossiers linked to the organisation of checks on activities at sea. However the main decision expected concerns the prices for the next fishing season. Below is the agenda for the session:
- Enforcement of a Community fishing system. The Council must adopt conclusions on the basis of the European Commission report concerning the enforcement of the Community fishing and fish farming system for the 1996-1998 period.
- Development of a framework provision for the fleet. The policy debate on this issue will no doubt be the most heated of this session. It follows on from the discussion that the Ministers had at the start of the summer on the functioning of the POP IV that they had judged unsatisfactory following the publication by the European Commission of a report favouring the strengthening of measures to reduce the fleets capacity (see EUROPE of 11 Mat, p.11). They had, as had the representatives from the sector, questioned the instrument that forms this multiannual policy programme. The Ministers will attempt to find guidelines in view of defining a new framework policy for the fleet. This debate is also part of the build up to the more general review of the Common Fisheries Policy that should occur in 2002.
- Cofinancing of monitoring measure in Community waters. The Council will have a policy debate on the decision proposal relating to the financial participation (50%) of the Community in certain spending by the Member States in terms of check on fishing activities. The discussion should cover the duration of this participation (3 or 5 years) and the type of cofinanced measures.
- Monitoring measures in the North Eastern Atlantic. The Minister will try to reach a common policy over the draft Commission regulation that aims to prorogue for three years the taking charge by the Community budget of certain spending for the checking of fishing activities that stem from international undertakings made in the framework of multilateral cooperation in this area.
- Stock management measures for large migratory fish. The Council should adopt a common policy on the Commission proposal relating to the Communities financial participation in the implementation of certain measures for the management of the stocks of large migratory fish in the framework of the International convention on the conservation of Atlantic tuna (CICTA). In this case it concerns the embarking on board monitoring ships responsible for ensuring the respect for the ban on the use of wreaks in certain Atlantic areas. In fact the CICTA bans this method that aims to increase the catches close to wreaks whose presence attracts fish. The period covered by this monitoring measure goes from 1 November 2000 to the end of January 2001. A cofinancing of 50% (EUR 190,026) is foreseen for 23 Spanish ships and 16 French boats that fish in this region.
- Fuel price rise. The Ministers will have an exchange of views over the impact of the rise in diesel prices on the balance of fishing companies.
- Red Tuna catches. The Ministers must adopt the regulation that distributes a volume of 2,581 tonnes of red tuna in the Eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean. During the examination of catches made in the area covered by the CICTA, it was noted that the quota allocated to the EU was not fully used: the fishing efforts of several member States remains below the possibilities offered. The excess will be distributed between France (1,211 tonnes), Greece (323 tonnes), Italy (941 tonnes) and Portugal (106 tonnes). Spain which exceeded its quota will not see itself attributed the possibility of extra fishing. It had issued reservations during a previous discussion on this dossier.
- Negotiations with Morocco. Commissioner Franz Fischler will discuss the situation.
- Overlapping stocks: The Ministers will hear a information memo from the Commission on the United Nations Convention relating to overlapping stocks. Commissioner Fischler should once more insist for an acceleration of the ratification of this convention that has still not come into force.
- Prices for 2001 fishing season. The French Presidency would like to achieve the adoption of the regulation setting the guidelines prices and the production prices for fish products for the next fishing season. These prices , which are mainly of an indicative nature, are, each year, the object bargaining between Member States, but their setting remains much less delicate that those of the TAC and the quotas the will arise during the following Council on 14 and 15 December.
