THIRTEENTH REPORT
The European Scrutiny Committee has made further
progress in the matter referred to it and has agreed to the following
Report:—
COMMISSION GREEN PAPER ON THE FUTURE OF
THE COMMON FISHERIES POLICY
(a)
(22292)
7262/01
COM(01) 135
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Green Paper on the future of the Common Fisheries Policy.
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(b)
(22344)
7263/01
—
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Report on the state of the resources and their expected development.
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(c)
(22346)
7377/01
—
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Report on the economic and social situation of coastal regions.
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(d)
(22347)
7378/01
—
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Report on the implementation of the Community system for fisheries and aquaculture over the period 1993-2000.
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| Legal base: |
— |
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| Document originated:
| 20 March 2001 |
| Forwarded to the Council:
| 22 March 2001 |
| Deposited in Parliament:
| (a) 12 April 2001
(b) - (d) 30 April 2001
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| Department: |
Agriculture, Fisheries and Food
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| Basis of consideration:
| EM of 3 May 2001 |
| Previous Committee Report:
| None; but see (20955) 5051/00: HC 23-xi (1999-2000), paragraph 13 (8 March 2000)
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| To be discussed in Council:
| 18 June 2001 |
| Committee's assessment:
| Politically important
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| Committee's decision:
| For debate in European Standing Committee A
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Background
1.1 The current legislative basis for the
Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) expires at the end of 2002, and
the Commission is required to produce proposals on the future
of the Policy by 31 December 2001, with the Council then taking
decisions during 2002. With this in mind, the Commission has for
some time been canvassing views on what the arrangements from
2003 onwards should be. It has now produced in the current document
a Green Paper on the subject (document (a)), accompanied by three
background reports (documents (b)-(d)), on which it has asked
for comments by 30 September 2001. It will then put forward by
the end of this year, as required, its formal proposals for a
new Common Fisheries Policy to apply from 1 January 2003.
The current document
1.2 The Green Paper is divided into four
main sections. The first sets out the basic principles of the
CFP, and relevant articles of the Treaty. Although there is
no specific fisheries chapter, the Commission says that the latter
include:
- Article 33, which assigns to the CFP the same
general objectives as the Common Agricultural Policy, namely to
ensure a fair standard of living for those in the industry, to
stabilise markets, to assure the availability of supplies, to
ensure that those supplies reach consumers at reasonable prices,
and to ensure the principle of non-discrimination;
- Article 6, which stipulates that environmental
protection requirements must be integrated into Community policies,
in particular with a view to promoting sustainable development;
- Article 174, which requires Community policy
on the environment to be based on the precautionary principle;
- Articles 153 and 159, which respectively require
the CFP also to take into account consumer protection requirements
and the objectives of economic and social cohesion; and
- Articles 177 and 178, which require the objectives
of the Treaty in the sphere of development co-operation to be
taken into account.
The Commission observes that a number of these objectives
— such as ensuring the conservation of stocks, whilst promoting
the continuation of fishing activities — may seem contradictory
or incompatible, at least in the short term, and that it is now
time to think more clearly about the objectives of the CFP and
to prioritise them.
1.3 The second part of the paper seeks to
establish where we are now and what will happen without change,
and does this by reference to a number of different headings.
— Conservation policy
1.4 The Commission notes that quantities
of mature demersal fish have in many cases declined significantly
over the last 25 years, with particularly dramatic reductions
in some stocks, such as cod and hake, leading to numbers being
below, or very close to, the minimum levels needed to ensure sustainability
if present rates of exploitation are maintained. The position
is said to be better for pelagic stocks, and, where recent difficulties
have occurred, as for North Sea herring, it has proved possible
to implement effective rebuilding measures in contrast to the
closures needed in the late 1970s. Likewise, although there is
a general economic over-exploitation of flatfish, the situation
at a biological level is not considered as systematically serious.
The Commission summarises the position by saying that many stocks
are at present outside safe biological limits, being too heavily
exploited and having low quantities of mature fish, or both, and
that, whilst the situation in most cases is not "catastrophic",
many stocks will collapse if current trends continue.
1.5 The Commission then analyses the causes
of the current situation. It notes that the CFP has relied almost
exclusively on total allowable catches (TACs) and measures such
as mesh sizes, closed areas, and closed seasons, and that attempts
in the past to control fishing effort have been largely unsuccessful,
as have efforts to adopt multi-annual approaches. Moreover, TACs
have been systematically been set at levels higher than indicated
in the scientific advice, with the difficulties being exacerbated
by over-fishing, discards and illegal landings, and the over-capacity
of the fleet. A further difficulty has arisen as a result of many
different species being taken by each operation of the fishing
gear.
— The environmental dimension
1.6 The Green Paper states that all fishing
activities have an impact on the marine ecosystem, but that the
severity of these effects and the time required to reverse them
are often not known. It comments that a reasonable balance has
to be struck between environmental and fisheries interests, with
the latter suffering from factors such as pollution. The Commission
points out that, as for other policy sectors, it is in the process
of integrating environmental concerns into the CFP, and that it
has set out in another Communication[1]
specific objectives and means to accomplish them.
— Fleet policy
1.7 The Commission says that, although fleet
capacity is currently defined in terms of tonnage and engine power,
there are other factors, such as advances in technology and design,
which mean that new vessels exert much more fishing effort than
existing ones of equivalent power. However, it adds that the fleet
is in any case currently much too large, and that, although earlier
attempts to address this question through multi-annual guidance
programmes (MAGPs) were relatively successful, the present programme
(MAGP IV) covering the period 1997-2001 is much weaker. The Commission
also considers that aid policy, including subsidies for construction,
modernisation and running costs, has often undermined the position,
since it has not been accompanied by a sufficient decrease in
capacity.
— Decision-making processes
1.8 The Commission says that taking decisions
at the Community level is not well suited to responding quickly
to local and emergency circumstances. It adds that it has been
clear that stakeholders do not feel sufficiently involved in such
matters as the elaboration of scientific advice and the adoption
of technical measures, with fishermen in particular believing
that their views have not been taken sufficiently into account,
thereby undermining support for the measures taken.
— Monitoring and control
1.9 The Commission observes that the monitoring
and control activities to enforce the CFP are widely seen as insufficient
and discriminatory, and that fishermen in almost all Member States
are calling for a more centralised and harmonised control system
at Community level. The Commission itself believes that the limited
powers given to Community inspectors constitute a major obstacle
to effective action, and that heterogeneous legal systems as between
one Member State and another often result in different treatment
of infringements. It also notes that the organisation of control
and monitoring is fragmented, not least as regards the respective
responsibilities of the Commission and Member States within regional
fisheries organisations.
— Economic and social dimension
1.10 The Green Paper comments that the CFP
has a significant economic impact, and in particular that about
1.1 billion euros of public money at either Member State or national
level is injected into the fisheries sector each year, representing
a significant proportion of the value of Community production
(7 billion euros from fish landings, and 2 billion euros from
aquaculture). It also notes the dependence on the fishing industry
of certain regions, many of them eligible for support under Objective
1. It says that, despite the importance of the Community's economic
involvement, strategies for the industry have remained the responsibility
of the Member States, which pursue different and sometimes conflicting
objectives, and that there is a "pressing need" for
greater clarification of policy objectives. However, it acknowledges
that the heterogeneity of the industry makes it difficult to provide
a single diagnosis, and that variations in financial performance
have often been the result of cyclical rather than structural
factors.
1.11 The Commission also considers the correlation
between turnover and the ability of enterprises to make a profit,
which it says is an indicator of the critical importance of the
balance between the available fisheries resources and the number
and capacity of vessels. It therefore sees a reduction in the
overall level of capital employed by the fleet as the first requirement
for an improvement in its economic performance. It also believes
that subsidies available to the fleet (for example for investment,
or on fuel) are counter-productive, in that they promote an over-supply
of capital, and more generally attract resources which would have
otherwise have gone to other parts of the economy. It further
comments that employment in the sector is steadily shrinking,
and that, if current approaches are not changed, it will become
less and less sustainable and viable.
— Aquaculture
1.12 The Commission notes that aquaculture
has contributed to the supply of fish products without increasing
pressure on wild stocks, and that it has also played a significant
role in the socio-economic development of coastal communities.
At the same time, however, there have been problems. As aquaculture
has expanded, it has been seen as a threat to other activities,
such as tourism, due to its adverse impact on water quality, and
the Commission comments that these kind of conflicts will need
to be addressed.
— The processing industry
1.13 The Green Paper notes that there are
2000 processing concerns in the Community, most of them small
or medium-sized enterprises, which have had to cope with a range
of problems, such as insufficient, irregular and non-competitive
supplies, major competition from third country products, and pressures
from the retail companies. It says that, in response to these
difficulties, there has been a significant restructuring, with
the emergence of large companies with a national, or even European,
dimension, producing multi-products with high added value. In
addition, Community aid policy between 1986 and 1999 evolved from
one of encouraging development and modernisation to restructuring
and improved competitiveness.
— International dimension of the CFP
1.14 The Commission notes that the Community
has one of the largest fishing fleets in the world, and that,
although most of it operates within home waters, a significant
part depends on access to non-Community resources, which are either
shared with third countries, in international waters, or in waters
under the jurisdiction of more distant coastal states. However,
problems are arising in the latter case from the wish of coastal
states to develop their own fishing sector, and, in many such
cases, stock depletion (often exacerbated by inadequate information)
is becoming a problem. It says this rules out any likelihood of
increasing the fishing opportunities for European vessels in such
waters.
1.15 In the third section of the Green Paper,
the Commission identifies the following objectives for the
future CFP:
- to establish sustainable fisheries which ensure
healthy marine eco-systems, maintaining the quality, diversity
and availability of marine resources and habitats;
- to contribute to the environmental objectives
in Article 174 of the Treaty through appropriate fisheries management
action, coupled with action to reduce the impact on fisheries
of activities such as maritime transport, oiling and dredging;
- to integrate health requirements into the CFP
in order to protect public and animal health, and to ensure a
stable supply to the European market at reasonable prices;
- to bring fleet capacity into line as soon as
possible with the availability and sustainability of the resources;
- to promote better governance through more transparent,
accountable and flexible management and decision-making processes
which involve stakeholders regionally and locally, and allow emergencies
and problems of a local nature to be adequately addressed;
- to ensure effective and transparent enforcement
rules which can guarantee a level playing field across the Community;
- to secure an economically viable and self-sufficient
sector which can be competitive in a globalised economy;
- to address the resultant problems of structural
adjustment;
- to promote the responsible and rational exploitation
of fishery resources in international waters, and to develop partnerships
with third countries consistent with Community development policy;
and
- to improve the quality and amount of relevant
data to support decision-making.
1.16 The Commission says that the launching
of a public debate on the basis of this Green Paper is the first
step towards achieving these objectives.
1.17 The remaining part of the Green Paper
is devoted to setting out the options and preferences for the
future CFP under each of the above headings.
— Conservation policy
1.18 The Commission says that the need to
lay down multi-annual management plans which take the precautionary
principle into account is now widely accepted. It suggests that
these should be based on a planned development of fishing mortalities
over a three to five year period, and should help to avoid two
major disadvantages of the present approach of fixing TACs annually
— the postponement of difficult decisions, and abrupt changes
from one year to another. Medium term environmental and ecosystem
objectives and strategies for key species and habitats could also
be established through limits on by-catches, and, as mixed fisheries
are relevant in Community waters, the Commission suggests that
it may be preferable to manage groups of stocks for well-defined
fisheries. The Commission then discusses the role of technical
measures, which it says should certainly contribute to improved
conservation, but where there is a need both to adopt more effective
rules and to explore measures (such as discard bans, or allowing
a percentage of by-catch species as part of the TAC) which have
not been applied up to now. Likewise, it sees an increasing scope
for recovery plans, such as the one adopted last year for Irish
Sea cod, to include specific technical measures.
1.19 This section of the Green Paper also
includes a highly significant passage on access to waters and
resources. It notes that the principle of relative stability as
regards quota shares has since 1983 avoided the need for an annual
political debate on the allocation key, and says that it does
not at present see any viable alternative which would achieve
the same results — a view which its consultation process
has shown to be widely shared throughout the Community. Consequently,
it sees no need for a radical revision of the existing system,
though it adds that, when the situation within the sector is more
stable, it may be possible to reconsider this, and the "possibility
of allowing market forces to operate in fisheries as in the rest
of the EU economy". It also notes that, as regards the 6-to-12-mile
coastal zone regime, the aim was protect the fisheries by reserving
access to small-scale local fisheries, and so protect the traditional
activities of coastal communities. It says that, given the further
decline in most stocks and the continuing difficulties of fisheries-dependent
regions, these objectives seem as relevant today as they were
in 1992, and again are generally supported throughout the Community.
However, it also says that calls for extension of the coastal
zone beyond 12 miles in some Member States have not been supported
by verifiable data, whilst modification of the 6-to-12-mile regime
would disrupt the long-standing balance of the policy. Similarly,
it recommends continuation of the present arrangements regarding
the Shetland Box, and points out that, although the legal restrictions
on access to the North Sea end on 31 December 2002, all fisheries
there of commercial interest are regulated by TACs and that access
is hence limited in practice to fleets holding quotas.
— Promoting the environmental dimension
1.20 The Commission says that, although
its proposed strategy for integrating environmental protection
requirements can be implemented under the existing CFP without
a need of reform, it believes the current review process allows
the efficiency of implementation to be improved by strengthening
the appropriate legal basis. It says it also intends to launch
in the near future a debate on eco-labelling of fisheries products,
so as to stimulate consumer awareness and hence attitudes of both
managers and fishermen. It suggests that such action might include
establishing a legal framework for voluntary labelling, with the
"constructive involvement" by public authorities reinforcing
the credibility of such schemes.
— Ensuring consumer protection by promoting
animal and public health and safety
1.21 The Commission recalls the generally
held view that eating fish has health benefits, though it also
points out that there can be risks from contamination by toxic
chemicals, heavy metals or parasites. It recalls that fisheries
products will be affected by the current overhaul of Community
food legislation, and that this might well have different effects,
with on the one hand demand being raised, and on the other, the
closure of fisheries in polluted areas. It says that the need
for any consequential structural adjustment will have to be taken
into account in Member States' programmes of financial assistance,
and that it is important to ensure that imports of fisheries products
fulfil equivalent health requirements.
— Fleet policy
1.22 The Commission stresses the need in
future for a simpler and more effective system which establishes
a balance between fleet capacity and exploitation rates consistent
with long-term management objectives, though it recognises that
this could be complex to put into practice, especially for segments
operating mixed fisheries. It highlights the need to ensure that
fleet reductions are at least large enough to counter the effect
of technological progress in vessel and gear design, and to distinguish
between individual fisheries so as to avoid an overall reduction
in capacity disguising an increase in capacity of vessels fishing
the most over-exploited species. It also lays great emphasis on
the need for public aid not to contribute to an increase in fishing
effort, and for aid for fleet renewal to be abandoned in the long
term. The Commission concludes this section by outlining two possible
approaches to fleet reduction — one involving the fixing
the quantitative objectives over a defined period, and the other
creating a mechanism which avoids fixed objectives but which causes
capacity to be reduced over time through requiring any new vessels
to be accompanied by the withdrawal of more capacity.
— Improved governance
1.23 The Commission says that it is desirable
for there to be new forms of participation in the pre-decision
phase of CFP policy-making. It advocates a network of regional
advisory committees, co-financed by the Community, national authorities
and stakeholders, and involving national officials, industry representatives,
fisheries biologists and economists, with participation from all
Member States involved in the fishery. It also suggests that responsiveness
would be improved by delegating to Member States, under conditions
defined in Community law, responsibility for adopting within territorial
waters specific local conservation measures (though the Commission
would retain its right of initiative to adopt emergency measures).
It also points out that, although Member States are currently
allowed to adopt stricter conservation measures under their jurisdiction,
these may at present apply only to their own fishermen, and it
suggests that in future such measures might be applicable to all
vessels operating in the waters concerned. These would need to
avoid either overt or covert discrimination against fishermen
from other Member States, and to be compatible with those applying
outside the territorial waters.
1.24 The Commission also draws attention
in this section to the role of Integrated Coastal Zone Management
(ICZM) in reducing conflict between fishing communities and other
uses. It says that, as well as promoting stakeholder involvement,
ICZM works towards the coordination of sectoral policies impacting
on the coastal zone, including land based activities.
— Monitoring, enforcement and control
1.25 The Commission believes that further
areas where progress is necessary could be the coordination of
national control policies, the harmonisation of penalties for
infringements of fisheries regulations, and the admissibility
by all Member States of inspection reports by Community and national
inspectors as a means of proof and transparency in the follow-up
of infringements. It also stresses the need for the Community
to adopt a position quickly on the division of responsibility
between the Commission and Member States on the control of fishing
in waters managed by regional fisheries organisations. Other aspects
mentioned are the possibility of setting up a Community Joint
Inspection Structure to co-ordinate national and Community inspection
policies and activity and to pool resources, the tightening of
infringement procedures, and improving the impact of penalties
for infringement, such as loss of quota, withdrawal of licences,
or repayment of financial aid.
— Strengthening the social and economic
dimension
1.26 This part of the Green Paper outlines
the issues which will need to be addressed as a consequence of
the cut-backs which the Commission foresees in catching capacity
and employment in the Community fishing fleet. It suggests that
this needs not only to secure a sustainable and viable fisheries
sector, but also to help those now in the industry to find alternative
employment, where the lack of transferability of skills is seen
as a problem. More specifically, the Commission believes that
greater flexibility will be needed to adjust structural policy
to new and unforeseen events, perhaps by relaxing limits on aid
for temporarily laying-up vessels; by Member States providing
less aid for modernisation or construction, and more for decommissioning;
and by the Community considering whether, and under what conditions,
investment aid for the fishing fleet might be phased out (though
it comments that small-scale artisanal fisheries may need to be
excluded from this approach). In addition, the Commission identifies
a number of other management tools, which it says are not yet
widely used in Europe, but which might be explored. These include
market-based systems for the allocation of quotas (such as individual
transferable quotas and auctions), "co-management" systems;
and access levies for the rights to fish, at least for some part
of the Community fleet. The Commission is proposing to co-ordinate
an exchange on view on these ideas, with a view to preparing a
report in 2003 at the latest.
1.27 The Green Paper also mentions two other
areas where action may be needed. First, it says that Community
policy for the processing sector should be more selective and
geographically focussed on the basis of cohesion policy criteria,
targeting small and medium-sized enterprises in areas most dependent
on fishing activities. Secondly, it highlights the importance
of the relationship between aquaculture and the environment, and
the particular need to adopt sustainable practices, alongside
the "imperatives" of health and quality standards. It
also notes that, whereas twenty years ago, aquaculture was for
many species a high risk activity, this is no longer the case,
and it questions the wisdom of the Community continuing to subsidise
investments by private companies in production capacity for species
where the market is close to saturation.
— External relations
1.28 The Commission notes the importance
to the Community fleet of access to fish stocks in international
waters and those of third countries. In the former case, it says
that the Community should be leading the efforts of the international
community, and it identifies the priorities as being promoting
regional fisheries agreements, promoting the rational exploitation
of the high seas resources, contributing to the application of
the precautionary principle, stepping up the fight against illegal,
unreported and unregulated fishing by strengthening monitoring
and control activities, and encouraging the participation of developing
states in the relevant regional organisations. As regards bilateral
co-operation, the Commission says that access for the Community
fleet to surplus stocks should be achieved in a manner coherent
with other objectives in the development and environmental spheres,
and in particular ensure the sustainability of resources. On the
last point, it says that a prerequisite is to strengthen the research
capacities of partner countries and regions as regards the state
of the resources.
— Research and scientific advice
1.29 The Commission stresses the place of
fisheries resources in their wider ecosystem. It says that this
requires a substantial effort to improve understanding of the
functioning of those systems and how they react to different types
of fishing pressure and exploitation strategies, thereby combining
conventional fisheries science with conservation science and economics.
It adds that research priorities need to be better defined, with
innovative research required in areas such as selective and environmentally
friendly gears, genetics, methodologies for improved assessment
and sampling programmes, and sustainable aquaculture systems.
The Government's view
1.30 In his Explanatory Memorandum of 3
April 2001, the Parliamentary Secretary (Commons) at the Ministry
of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (Mr Morley) says that this
review offers an important opportunity with considerable implications
for the future of fisheries management. The UK shares the Commission's
view that a common fisheries policy is clearly essential if stocks
are to be conserved, but that the current CFP is failing to meet
all the objectives originally set for it, making it necessary
for significant improvements to be made.
1.31 The Minister says that the Green Paper
sets out many of the concerns previously identified by the Government
as priorities for consideration in the review. In particular,
the poor state of the fish stocks must be addressed, where the
Government agrees with the Commission that a range of measures
is needed, and that a better balance between capacity and stock
availability must be secured. He suggests that the phasing out
of construction and modernisation grants is particularly important.
The Minister also says that technical conservation measures, particularly
to protect spawning stocks and juveniles, must be strengthened,
which should more readily be achieved by improving stakeholder
involvement and hence a sense of ownership. He points out that
a number of recent initiatives — notably in the development
of cod and hake recovery plans — have increased the direct
involvement of fishermen and scientists in regional fisheries
management decisions, and that building on these is important,
as is the establishment of bodies along the lines of the suggested
regional advisory committees.
1.32 On access to stocks, the Minister says
that the UK welcomes the Commission's arguments in favour of the
maintenance of the current 6 and 12 mile restrictions, which are
of particular importance to the inshore fleet, and he suggests
that there would also be value in making these permanent. He also
considers that the suggestion that Member States should be given
control over conservation measures for all vessels within 12 mile
limits could offer benefits in terms of stock conservation, wider
environmental protection, and safeguarding inshore activity. The
Commission's support for the retention of the Shetland Box beyond
2002, and the continued use of relative stability (with recognition
of the value of Hague Preference) as the basis for allocating
national shares of total allowable catches are also welcome.
1.33 Finally, the Minister says that a number
of other issues identified as important by the Commission are
in line with UK thinking. These include greater environmental
integration and the pursuit of sustainable development, more consistency
in control and enforcement, and better value for money in third
country agreements. He adds that the need for coherence between
Community commercial policy on fisheries and development policies
to eradicate poverty in developing countries are also of critical
concern.
1.34 The Government, and the devolved administrations
have launched a consultation exercise, and the results of this
will be taken into account in UK preparations for what the Minister
calls the "major debate" on the Green Paper expected
in the Fisheries Council on 18 June 2001.
Conclusion
1.35 Although this document does not
contain any legislative proposals, it is nevertheless highly significant
in terms of setting the agenda for the future of the Common Fisheries
Policy, and the Minister's comments confirm that the debate in
the Fisheries Council in June will be a major event. We therefore
think it important that the Green Paper (and the three background
papers circulated with it) should be debated in European Standing
Committee A before then, if at all possible, but, in any event,
before the Commission's deadline of 30 September for the receipt
of comments. We believe that the various headings in paragraphs
1.18 - 1.29 above would provide a useful annotated agenda for
such a debate, though it seems to us that the House may wish to
pay particular attention to those parts of the Green Paper dealing
with the setting of total allowable catches, access to waters
and resources, fleet policy, and monitoring, enforcement and control.
1 (22279) 7260/01; see paragraph 17 of this Report. Back
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