Beyond the skewed content of the note that contains half-truths and apocalyptic statements not based on factual data, what is most shocking to Europêche is the fact that the note seems to be aimed only at a reduced group of like-minded MEPs, not specialized on fisheries-related issues, with the sole apparent goal of generating political support and momentum to crush the Parliamentary position democratically adopted by the Members of the PECH Committee.

Against this scenario, European fishers have sent an open letter showing their irritation towards a European Commission who portrays its own fishing industry as illegal predators and structural rule-breakers. Europêche perceives this attitude as a seed of an increasing anti-EU sentiment among fishers.

Daniel Voces, managing director of Europêche, declared: “EU fishers and their organisations wish to have a continued constructive partnership with the European Commission, but this seems increasingly difficult when DG MARE considers and describes its own industry as a destructive force”.

These unfounded allegations add up to the long list of existing problems that the EU fishing industry must already cope with and for which it needs the political support of the European Commission and its Fisheries Commissioner. The Brexit outcome, the implementation of the post Brexit situation in the North Sea and the NE Atlantic, the spatial claims on fishing grounds by renewable energy and marine protected areas as well as the on-going market impact of Covid-19, just to name a few of them.

In light of the above, Europêche urges the Commission to stop casting a shadow of suspicion on the sector and its compliance as a whole as well as to respect the democratic decisions adopted by specialized Parliamentary Committees. “The debate on complex and technical issues, such as the control regulation, should be done in a transparent manner and always seeking the outcome of rational policies which, in the end, will have to be applied by fishers”, concluded Mr Voces.

Press contacts:

Rosalie Tukker, Policy Advisor of Europêche: +32 2 230 48 48  rosalie.tukker@europeche.org

EP Press Release – Open Letter Commissioner Control Reg

In the context of the ongoing revision of the EU fisheries control system,¹  the fishing industry association Europêche² and the EU IUU Coalition³ have released a joint statement addressed to EU decision makers.

While acknowledging the clear contribution of the current Control Regulation to improve compliance with fisheries rules, they call on Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) and EU fisheries Ministers to resolve the shortcomings.⁴ Particularly, the current lack of harmonised sanctions for infringements, insufficient data exchange, ambiguity of legal provisions, and disparities in the level of scrutiny in the implementation of control measures and traceability across Member States are creating a complex and uneven playing field for operators, leaving the system open for abuse. These issues highlight the need for simplification and harmonisation, and must be addressed in the future Control Regulation. The upcoming votes on the Regulation in the European Parliament and the Council of Ministers happening towards the end of the year are important opportunities for change.

 The organisations call on EU decision makers to enhance and digitise traceability of seafood products, simplify and better align control measures, require additional information for imported fisheries products, require tracking and electronic catch reporting for small-scale fishing vessels (taking into account the specifications of the fishery), and provide more public information on the implementation of enforcement measures by Member States. This will create a true level playing field on EU control efforts so all fishers are fairly and equally treated.

Daniel Voces de Onaindi, Managing Director at Europêche said: “The current EU fisheries control system is one of the most advanced in the world and has undoubtedly contributed to step up compliance with the Common Fisheries Policy and to the sustainable management of our fish stocks. Now, both Europêche and NGOs call for improvements to modernise and simplify the existing framework and overcome implementing flaws to render the system more effective. Our fishermen need clear and efficient rules uniformly applied across the EU to guarantee equal treatment, reduce bureaucracy and make their life easier.”

The EU IUU Coalition said: “It is critical that the revision of the fisheries Control Regulation ensures the sustainability objectives of the Common Fisheries Policy are met. The revised rules must strengthen compliance, modernise data management, intensify the fight against illegal fish products and guarantee a level playing field for all stakeholders in the EU. A powerful signal is being sent to EU decision makers today, with NGOs and Europêche united in proposing solutions for effective rules on fisheries control, monitoring and enforcement. We are counting on EU decision makers to ensure that the legal and implementation deficiencies are addressed, and that the future Control Regulation creates a harmonised system that secures sustainable fisheries in Europe.” 

Notes:

1. The current fisheries Control Regulation has existed since 2010 and aims to create an EU-wide control system that ensures the sustainability objectives of the Common Fisheries Policy are met. Legal and implementation flaws of the current control system, however, make clear the need for necessary improvements to modernise and simplify the way in which fishing rules are monitored and complied with in the EU. The current revision is: 2018/0193(COD) Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Council Regulation (EC) No 1224/2009, and amending Council Regulations (EC) No 768/2005, (EC) No 1967/2006, (EC) No 1005/2008, and Regulation (EU) No 2016/1139 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards fisheries control.
2. Europêche is the representative body for fishermen and fishing vessel owners in the European Union.
3. The Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF), Oceana, The Nature Conservancy, The Pew Charitable Trusts and WWF are working together to promote EU leadership in improving global fisheries transparency and governance to end illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing.
4. European Court of Auditors, special report No 08/2017, EU fisheries controls: More efforts needed and Commission Staff Working Document Impact Assessment SWD/2018/280 final.

Press contact:

Rosalie Tukker, Policy Advisor, Europêche | Rosalie.tukker@europeche.org |+32 2 230 48 48

Irene Campmany, Communications Officer, Oceana Europe, on behalf of the EU IUU coalition | icampmany@oceana.org |+34 911.44.08.80  and +34 682.622.245

EP and Environmental NGOs Press Release – Modern, Effective and Simplified EU Fisheries Control Rules

The new Director agreed with the fishing industry’s claim for better positioning fisheries in the EU Green Deal and in the Farm to Fork Strategy. While supportive of the Green Deal goals as such, Europêche and EAPO objected against setting unrealistic and very harmful objectives, such as fencing-off 30% of EU seas as Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) or phasing-out bottom trawling. The industry pointed in this context to the recent positive FAO report that shows that about 80% of the fish consumed worldwide comes from sustainable stocks. In the EU, according to the Commission’s latest communication, more than 99% of the landings in the Baltic, North Sea and the Atlantic managed exclusively by the EU will come from sustainably managed fisheries in 2020. The importance of seafood for a healthy, low carbon footprint diet was underlined and this meant that seafood should be promoted in the Farm to Fork strategy.

EAPO and Europêche reflected on the consequences of the Covid-19 crisis. Europêche president Javier Garat emphasised that: “We continue fishing through the crisis to provide sustainable healthy food to the consumers, but the drop in demand and prices has not recovered and the upcoming economic crisis will affect markets and our sector for a considerable time to come”. The mitigating measures taken by the Commission were welcomed by the industry and who pleaded for a rapid unlocking of €500 mln additional fisheries funds.

Other central topics were discussed such as the ongoing revision of the control regulation. EAPO and Europêche underlined the need for a simpler regulation with less administrative burden. Also the increased use of marine space by MPAs and windfarms led to the sector’s call for support of the Commission to guarantee continued fishing activities at sea for ensuring food security and supporting coastal communities across Europe.

Europêche and EAPO asked the European Commission to make life easier for fishermen since they have to face far too many regulations and bureaucracy of such complexity that hampers daily fishing operations. In this context, the fishing industry called on the Commission to be sensitive and as flexible as possible in the implementation of the newly adopted multi-annual plan for the western Mediterranean in a way that does not aggravate the socio-economic consequences caused by this pandemic. Furthermore, both organizations have proposed DG Mare to eliminate the regime of the autonomous tariff quotas (ATQ) for tuna loins at zero-duty tariff because it has been demonstrated that there is enough raw material available that this ATQ distorts the tuna market. In this sense, the sector also informed the new DG about the importance of guaranteeing the level playing field to ensure the competitiveness of the EU fleet.

On behalf of the industry, EAPO president, Pim Visser invited Ms. Vitcheva: “To visit one of our ports and see all the aspects of the food supply insured by the fishing industry”. Follow-up meetings to exchange views will also be welcomed.

Press contacts:

Rosalie Tukker, Policy Advisor of Europêche: +32 (0)2 230 48 48 rosalie.tukker@europeche.org  

EP and EAPO Press Release – New Director General of DG MARE