FISHERIES: CONTROL MEASURES IN INTERNATIONAL
WATERS OF THE NORTH-EAST ATLANTIC
(20414)
10074/99
COM(99) 345
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Draft Council Regulation laying down certain control measures applicable in the area covered by the Convention on Future Multilateral Co-operation in the North-East Atlantic Fisheries.
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| Legal base:
| Article 37 EC; qualified majority voting
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| Department:
| Agriculture, Fisheries and Food
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| Basis of consideration:
| Minister's letter of 18 November 1999
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| Previous Committee Report:
| HC 34-xxviii (1998-99), paragraph 19 (20 October 1999)
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| Discussed in Council:
| 22 November 1999 |
| Committee's assessment:
| Politically important |
| Committee's decision:
| Cleared |
Background
10.1 Although most fishing takes place within
waters under national jurisdiction, it has also proved necessary
for organisations such as the North-East Atlantic Fisheries Commission
(NEAFC) to manage fish stocks in international waters. In our
Report of 20 October, we noted that the proposed Council Regulation
would implement two recommendations agreed at the 1998 annual
meeting of NEAFC, introducing respectively a control and enforcement
scheme applicable to vessels flying the flag of Contracting Parties
operating within the NEAFC area, and a programme to promote compliance
by non-Contracting Party vessels.
10.2 In welcoming this extension of controls
within the NEAFC area, we nevertheless noted the concern expressed
by the Government at the resource implications of the Commission's
suggestion that inspection vessels should be provided by Member
States, whereas in other areas this is done by the Commission
itself. We therefore said that, before we could clear the document,
we would like to see what the relative resource costs of these
two approaches would be for the UK, together with an indication
of how far the UK and other Member States taking a similar view
had been able in discussions in Brussels to persuade the Commission
to take a different approach.
Minister's letter of 18 November 1999
10.3 In his letter of 18 November 1999,
the Minister for Fisheries and the Countryside at the Ministry
of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (Mr Morley) says that the annual
operational cost to the Ministry in British fishery limits adjacent
to England and Wales is some £5.8 million for fishery protection
vessels, and £2.4 million for surveillance aircraft, with
similar costs falling to the Scottish Fisheries Protection Agency
for patrolling the Scottish zone. He points out that the cost
to the UK of contributing to an enforcement presence in NEAFC
waters would depend on the number of patrol days and flying hours
required, and the availability of suitable vessels and aircraft;
and he goes on to suggest that, while an initial ad hoc
inspection presence may be possible using existing resources,
this would be at the expense of patrols in British limits. He
further points out that the extent of enforcement activities in
NEAFC waters is likely to increase over time, but that, although
the additional resources required for this purpose are likely
to be "substantial", it is difficult to quantify them
at this stage. He says that, for its part, the Commission has
indicated that, were it to provide the inspection services in
NEAFC waters, this would require additional enforcement expenditure
of around 3.5 million euro (nearly £2,250,000) a year, but
that it is not clear whether this would be financed from within
the Commission's existing budgetary resources, or would require
additional provision.
10.4 As regards the views of others, the
Minister says that the majority of the eight Member States active
in NEAFC waters have expressed opposition to the suggestion that
they, rather than the Commission, should provide inspection services,
and that there are therefore "grounds for optimism that things
will be changed". The subject was due to be discussed at
the Fisheries Council on 22 November, and the Minister said that
he would keep us informed of developments.
Conclusion
10.5 We are grateful to the Minister
for this further information, from which we note both the difficulty
of quantifying at this stage the cost of Member States taking
on enforcement duties in the NEAFC area and the view taken by
the majority of interested Member States that this task should
fall to the Commission. In the light of this further information,
we are now clearing this proposal, but we would be glad if the
Minister would, as he has promised, continue to keep us informed
of developments.
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