Fisheries ministers struggle to agree new policy

Fisheries ministers struggled yesterday for a clear route to ensure Europe’s fish stocks recover and provide a decent livelihood for their fishermen.

At a special meeting in Luxembourg, the usual battles between member states threatened to scupper what was to be a major overhaul of the EU’s fishing policy that all now admit has wasted millions of euro in subsidies and resulted in three quarters of fish stocks in danger.

A European Commission plan is meant to see fish stocks revived and the industry thrive by 2020. Proposals include changing the quota structure that year after year see ministers largely ignore scientific advice and carve up stocks among the various countries. The plan suggests changing this to use multi-annual plans that take into account the longer term needs to ensure stocks recover and are healthy enough to yield sufficient catch without jeopardising their future by 2015.

However this was watered down over the past few months with ministers pushing for the time line to achieve maximum sustainable yield to be extended to 2020.

A big issue for Ireland is how to deal with discards, fish thrown back because they are too small, not the right species or are not allowed to be caught under the quota system.

Fisheries Minister Simon Coveney has put forward proposals to gradually eliminate discards using technical measures, such as special nets, with quota adjustments to cushion economic hardship for fishermen, and he appeared to be gaining support for this last night.

He also has the support of the European Association of Fish Producers led by Killybegs Fisheries’ Organisation chief executive Sean O’Donoghue.

The ministers hope to agree the basics of a new policy, but for the first time the European Parliament will have an equal say, and are pushing for much more stringent measures so far. Both will have to agree before the new policy becomes law.