EU fisheries ministers complete gruelling Common Fisheries Policy reform negotiations

EU Fisheries Ministers Complete Gruelling Common Fisheries Policy Reform Negotiations 

Brussels, 15 May 2013 - Early this morning European Union fisheries ministers concluded a two day meeting on reform of the Common Fisheries Policy, CFP. 

Ministers were meeting to revise the mandate of the Irish Presidency so it can conclude CFP reform negotiations with the European Parliament.

They agreed to important changes, some of which are going in the right direction with others going back on the Council’s previous position.

“We acknowledged that the Fisheries Council has made a move in the right direction by supporting the rebuilding of fish stocks,” said Siobhán Egan of BirdWatch Ireland and OCEAN2012. “However, ministers have not agreed to a target date by which fish stocks should be rebuilt. This will make setting fishing limits that will recover EU fish stocks without delay more difficult.”

“We also welcome the decision to make EU funding for fishing fleets conditional upon member States’ reporting on fleet capacity. However, the proposed text is weaker than Council’s draft position on the proposed EU Maritime and Fisheries Fund,” said Egan.

Millions of EU citizens support this reform and want to see an end to the misuse of taxpayers’ money and improvements in enforcement and fisheries control.

In February, the European Parliament voted overwhelmingly in support of a far-reaching CFP reform that would rebuild fish stocks without delay. EU fisheries ministers rejected this ambition and have struggled to agree a compromise position with the Parliament ever since.

Feeble beginning to Common Fisheries Policy reform not likely to help fish, fishermen or marine wildlife

The regrettable failure of EU fisheries ministers to adopt a more radical reform of the Common Fisheries Policy will not end overfishing but may scupper chances of achieving sustainable fisheries for the people and wildlife that depend on them, according to BirdWatch Ireland.

Representatives of OCEAN2012 outside the
EU Parliament at the launch of European Fish Weeks

BirdWatch Ireland, Ireland’s largest environmental NGO, was extremely disappointed by the outcome of the EU Fisheries Council meeting in Luxembourg on Wednesday (June 13th).  Instead of adopting more positive measures to end overfishing by 2015, the Council decided to be less ambitious and agree in principle to ending overfishing, but perhaps not until 2020.  The general approach includes a delay of a proposed discard ban, with one date given for target species and another for discard species, a delay in ending overfishing and a delay in adhering to scientific advice on maximum exploitation rates of already diminishing stocks.

Dr. Sinéad Cummins of BirdWatch Ireland’s Conservation Team said, "Numerous scientific and marine experts have flagged the problems of overfishing at current rates, concluding that by 2048 there will be no more fish to catch in most of the world’s oceans."  She added that, "Fisheries must be regulated properly so that fish are not caught at a faster rate than they can reproduce and so that fishing techniques do not cause significant harm to marine ecosystems."

Alan Lauder, Chief Executive of BirdWatch Ireland, commented, "EU fisheries ministers have so far failed to show courage and break with existing failed policies.  Instead, they have chosen to continue their record of mismanagement by delaying the end of overfishing in the EU, guaranteeing yet further harm both to ecosystems and to those people who depend on sustainable, viable fisheries for their livelihoods."

BirdWatch Ireland, along with the 166 strong European membership of OCEAN2012, is now looking to the European Parliament (and to the Plenary Vote by MEP’s in November) to support a Common Fisheries Policy reform that delivers a healthy marine environment and viable fishery-dependent communities.

Will Minister Conveney listen to science when it comes to protecting the marine environment?

Seabirds, like humans, depend on a healthy marine environment, which is why BirdWatch Ireland is proud to be an active member of OCEAN2012, a coalition dedicated to ensuring that the 2012 reform ofthe EU Common Fisheries Policy stops overfishing, ends destructive fishing practices and delivers fair and equitable use of healthy fish stocks.

This week Minister Simon Coveney, along with other fisheries ministers, will signal how committed he is to protecting the marine environment.  In the space of a few days they will set fishing limits for stocks in a setting where science has taken second place to politics: this is unacceptable.

Puffin © Peter Loughlin

"We cant afford to damage fish stocks and squander marine resources", said Alan Lauder, BirdWatch Ireland's CEO. "The way the minister behaves now signals how seriously they are taking the ongoing review of Common Fisheries Policy which needs dramatic change so that healthy seas exist in the future, both for marine wildlife and for the people whose livelihoods depend on fishing."


"We will want to see technical measures to stop seabird bycatch, management tools like marine protected areas, and fishing methods that don't damage marine ecosystems," added Siobhán Egan, Policy Officer with BirdWatch Ireland.  "Birds depend on heathy seas. The current Common Fisheries Policy has been a disaster: will Minister Coveney be the man to make a difference?"

Click for more on the benefits of setting fishing limits that don't exceed scientific advice

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Make Ireland an Ocean Champion! TODAY!!!

Within 24 hours, the Irish government could join a growing European call to strengthen fishing limits, but only if they hear from concerned citizens from across Ireland first!

The EU is currently reforming its “Common Fisheries Policy”, but the proposals don’t go far enough towards saving our seas through science-based catch limits. Ireland is one of the first countries to review the new plans and our government is hosting a public consultation for the next 24 hours.

Call for tighter catch limits and make Ireland an ocean champion by adding your voice here: 
http://www.avaaz.org/en/ireland_save_european_seas/?cl=1353469736&v=10852