CFP Reform
Implementation of the Landings
Obligation: Context and Process
The Key Legal Provisions
 Common Fisheries Policy – Basic Regulation
 Common Organisation of the Markets in Fisheries
and Aquaculture Products
 European Maritime and Fisheries Fund
 Focus today on the Basic Regulation only
Reform Package – Basic Regulation
A brief history.........
Proposals:
• Green Paper in 2009
• Original Commission proposal (2011)
• “General Approach” in Council (Feb 2013)
• European Parliament amendments (Feb 2013)
• Trilogues (March - May 2013)
• Deal???? (June 2013) – to be finalised
Key
Content
 Regionalisation
 Elimination of discards
 Maximum Sustainable Yield
 Coherence with environmental legislation.
 Science
 External Dimension
 Aquaculture
Discards
Objective - Elimination of discards.
• Progressively implemented landing obligations
(discard bans).
• Detailed rules/quota provisions to aid
implementation.
• Specifics can be set out in EU plans, or in detailed
technical measures, but landing obligations /
deadlines apply in any event.
Regionalisation
• Member States and Advisory Councils to work
together to develop detailed technical measures.
• Multiannual plans would set direction. Regions have
the opportunity to agree management detail.
• New routes to give measures legal effect.
Regionalisation (continued)
• Where Member States agree detailed measures for
a fishery, option to enact quickly in EU law, or
potentially national measures.
• Cooperation between Member States and relevant
Advisory Councils.
• More responsive than co-decision.
• Coordinated management without delegating legal
power to Commission.
Multiannual
Plans
• Multiannual plans consistent with general CFP
objectives.
• Either single species or mixed fisheries plans, with
adjustments to achieve MSY.
• Mandatory content – e.g. Quantifiable targets and
safeguards.
• Optional content – detailed conservation measures,
discard provisions etc
Maximum Sustainable Yield
 By 2015 where possible, 2020 in any event.
 Legally binding exploitation target, Biomass
aspiration.
Integration with Environmental
Environmental
Integration.
Policy
• Member States propose, but enacted via regionalised
process, Commission powers in some cases, or full
co-decision.
• Protected areas and establishment of Fish Stock
Recovery Areas
Access & Fishing Opportunities
• Access provisions continue – i.e. access to all waters,
subject to 0-12 arrangements.
• Fishing opportunities remain allocated by Member
States; explicit criteria
• MSs can choose Transferable Fishing Concessions as
an option
• MS reporting on capacity, action plan and
“adjustments” where necessary.
External
Dimension
External
Dimension
Principles guiding third country agreements and other
external EU engagement :
• Same principles of sustainability inside and outside
EU waters.
• More transparent agreements, based on science.
• Coherence with development aims.
Aquaculture
Aquaculture
• New Advisory Council for aquaculture.
• Encouraging sustainable aquaculture, and national
“strategic plans”
Control & Enforcement
Co-ordination,
Compliance,
Finance
• Emphasis on coordination, cost-efficiency, culture of
compliance and effective sanctions.
• Financial assistance conditional on compliance with
CFP’s rules.
• EMFF (to be finalised) – to support implementation
of reformed CFP.
Discards
(the detail)
Discards
– the
detail
• Landing obligations for all quota stocks
• Deadlines:
o Pelagics [no later than 1 Jan 2015]
o Listed whitefish stocks, defined by fishery
[2016-2018]
o Remainder [2017-2019]
Discards (Continued)
• Catch limits control what can be caught, not what
can be landed.
• Quotas should be adjusted accordingly, but remain
in place.
• Technical rules conflicting with landing obligation
reviewed/removed.
• Reduce unwanted catch in first instance –
selectivity, spatial measures, optimising use of
quota.
Discards (Continued)
Exemptions:
• Species for which fishing is prohibited;
• Species for which scientific evidence demonstrates
high survival rates;
• De minimis exemption [5% after transition period]
o Where evidence shows selectivity very difficult;
o To avoid disproportionate costs in limited cases.
Discards (Continued)
Quota provisions:
• Deducting unwanted catch from target species (not
more than 9% of quota for target species).
• Year-to-year flexibility of 10% of quota.
• International swapping between MSs.
Discards (Continued)
Controls:
• Full documentation of catches (including CCTV
and/or other methods).
• Minimum conservation reference sizes, where
appropriate, fish below used only for non-human
consumption.
Implementation
Implementation
What is it that we have to do?
• There is substantial change ahead but crucially
flexibility on how to deliver.
• Undertaking a detailed analysis of these new
provisions.
• Determine exactly what we have to do, by when,
who needs to be involved, our options and what
the respective roles and responsibilities could be.
Thank you to Defra for helping me put this together.