COASTAL FISHERIES AND THE SIX AND TWELVE MILE LIMITS

102. The existing derogations which allow Member States national control within twelve miles of the coast are established under Regulation 3760/92 and are due to expire on 31 December 2002. There appears to be wide support for renewal.

103. While strongly supporting such a renewal, the Committee recommends that to prevent future uncertainty, and to encourage long-term management policies compatible with sustainable development within coastal waters, these limits for national control should be renewed for as long a period as is necessary to secure these long-term objectives.

104. Coastal waters have a particular importance in supporting smaller vessels and low impact fishing. These waters support habitats for which the marine conservation requirements are often more important than in offshore waters. We recognise the success of the Sea Fisheries Committees in England and Wales in managing the territorial waters up to the six mile limit and commend this as a model for other coastal fisheries both in the rest of the United Kingdom and elsewhere in Europe, but with the limit of jurisdiction extended to twelve miles.

105. It is therefore important that the Green Paper addresses the specific issues which concern inshore fisheries, including the question of ensuring that there is adequate coherence between the Community's other policies which relate to coastal waters, such as the Habitats and Species Directive, the EC Biodiversity Strategy and the Environmental Impact Assessment Directive.

CONTROL WITHIN THE EXCLUSIVE ECONOMIC ZONE (EEZ)

106. Although sympathising with the feeling of frustration which lies behind it, the committee cannot support the demand for control of fishing up to the limits of 200­mile EEZs to be returned to national governments. The ecosystem approach which we are advocating, particularly in the shared waters of the Irish, North and Baltic Seas, call for more, not less, collaboration between EU Member States, and between the EU and its North Atlantic neighbours, if fish stocks are to be managed effectively. A common policy of some kind is essential.

MITIGATION OF THE SOCIAL EFFECTS OF ACHIEVING SUSTAINABLE FISHERIES

107. There is no escaping the fact that if capacity is to be reduced, there has to be a much greater expenditure on structural funding targeted at fishing communities. Had the funds available for fleet modernisation been made available instead for socio-economic restructuring purposes the money would have been well spent and the uptake in England and Wales would certainly have been higher. There has to be much larger investment than has been contemplated in the past in providing alternative employment opportunities for those currently employed in the fishing industry.

108. The Committee recommends that present levels of financial support for fishing communities from the Structural Funds and through any future Community initiative (such as the former PESCA programme) should be increased substantially. A greater proportion of FIFG funding should be allocated to supporting environmental and socio-economic restructuring programmes; it should not go towards subsidies for fleet modernisation. Part of this allocation should be specifically targeted at coastal fisheries within the twelve mile limit.

109. The main reason why these issues have never been properly addressed, either in the United Kingdom or in other Member States, is because fisheries have never been given enough political support. In the UK the Fisheries Minister has traditionally held a junior post in MAFF, and the same pattern now applies to the devolved administrations. Since our Report on the mid-term review of the CFP in 1992, the Minister of Agriculture has rarely attended the Fisheries Council in Brussels. If adequate resources are to be allocated from the Community Structural Funds or through other Community programmes, the issue will need to be tackled by enlisting the support of Finance Ministers, who must recognise the scale of the problem facing fishing communities around Europe. It follows from this that the long-term objective of reducing fishing capacity in order to achieve effective conservation and sustainable management of the marine environment, coupled with diversification of employment opportunities for communities traditionally dependent on fishing, should be a priority area for structural funding.

FISH FARMING

110. The Committee is in no doubt that aquaculture (fish farming) will play an increasingly important role in complementing efforts to stabilise and boost stocks of wild fish. It also has the potential to play a significant part in supporting artisanal fishing, eg in the Mediterranean and the third world. Sustainable aquaculture requires ensuring that there is minimal adverse environmental impact and improved access to appropriate research and development. It is essential that it is done in an ecologically sound manner which inhibits the spread of parasites and diseases.

111. As part of a wider view of sustainable fisheries policy, we recommend that the Green Paper on the CFP should include a substantial discussion of fish farming and its implications (including environmental ones) for a reformed CFP. We also support increased research and development funding in this sector.

ENFORCEMENT

112. While enforcement remains a national responsibility there will remain universal criticism of the lack of conformity of enforcement measures throughout the Community. We welcome the approach outlined to us by Fisheries Director-General Smidt. Member States must accept that common enforcement standards can only be achieved by allowing a greater degree of monitoring of their laws, regulations and administrative actions both by the Commission and by other Member States. We recommend that Member States agree to pool at least part of their enforcement capacity so that inspections at sea and at the dock can be made by a team drawn from at least two Member States, appointed by and acting with the authority of the Commission.

113. At the same time we are in no doubt that the Commission's own resources need to be increased substantially. On any reckoning, 25 Community fisheries inspectors are woefully inadequate for the task.

GLOBAL FISHERIES

114. The Commission has identified the external dimension of CFP, including re-orientating fisheries agreements and strengthening the Community's role in international fisheries bodies, as an important part of the 2002 review.

115. The absence of clear jurisdiction over fishing outside the 200 nautical miles exclusive economic zone limits the scope of effective conservation measures and enforcement in international waters. This problem is exacerbated by the increased pressure on these stocks as catches diminish in seas within the jurisdiction of states. The establishment of additional regional fisheries management organisations would be a move towards more effective management but their remit would need to be strengthened if fish stocks and the marine environment are to be adequately protected. The Community must be prepared to strengthen its role in international fisheries bodies. It will only be able to exert due influence when it has demonstrated an ability to operate a successful policy for fisheries in its own waters.

116. Fisheries agreements with developing countries cause the Committee particular concern. For example, communities dependent on small scale artisanal fisheries throughout West Africa are increasingly being threatened by the scale of European fishing effort in their traditional fishing areas. We agree with the Government that "mechanisms for improved co-ordination between development and commercial directorates within the Commission need to be introduced".[28]

117. The present level of EU fishing effort in developing countries is excessive. When existing agreements come up for renegotiation a wider view must be taken of the overriding global interests as well as of the long term interests of developing countries. Many of the present agreements cannot be described as compatible with sustainable development.

118. We are not persuaded that second generation fisheries agreements, which provide for joint enterprises under which vessels from EU Member States are reflagged to third countries, can work in the long term interest of third countries. These allow surplus capacity to be exported, to the detriment of local fishery interests. We have already recommended that when vessels are decommissioned they should be physically scrapped and not exported.

119. Certain parts of the Community fleet operate exclusively or primarily outside the EU zone fishing in third countries or international waters. The Community will not be able to attain the level of influence it seeks until it has put its own house in order. Fisheries managers in neighbouring countries of the North Atlantic (in particular Norway, Greenland and Iceland) have little reason at present to take advice from the European Union.

THE CFP IS FAILING

120. By December 2002 the Common Fisheries Policy will have been in operation for twenty years. It serves as an example of how a valid concept of shared management of a natural resource can be mishandled.

121. Addressing a WWF conference in Lisbon in September 1998, the Rt Hon John Gummer MP, Chairman of the Marine Stewardship Council and formerly Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (1989-93) and Secretary of State for the Environment (1993-97), said:

"If you are a fisheries minister you sit around the table arguing about fishermen—not about fish. You're there to represent your fishermen. You're there to ensure that if there are ten fish you get your share and if possible a bit more. The arguments aren't about conservation, unless of course you are arguing about another country."[29]

122. The failure of the CFP has been due in large measure to lack of political will. The evidence of declining stocks, inappropriate control measures, inadequate enforcement and a lack of cohesion between fisheries policy and other Community policies—particularly environment and development—amounts to a tragic catalogue of misgovernment. The failure to manage the fish resource calls into question the EU's ability to manage other policies in a way which is compatible with sustainable development.

THE FORTHCOMING GREEN PAPER

123. The Green Paper will demonstrate whether the Commission recognises the scale and nature of the problem that needs to be addressed. One of the aims of this Report has been to draw attention to issues which the Committee considers must feature in any review of the CFP if the task is to be done properly. Needless to say, we shall be pleased if our conclusions find an echo in the Commission's own thoughts when the Green Paper is published early in 2001.

124. These conclusions may nevertheless require further elaboration. Another aim of the Report is to serve as an aide-mémoire for those preparing their own responses to the Commission's consultation. The Sub­Committee may therefore wish to revisit the subject when the Green Paper is available and to consider whether to offer further opinions against the background of the evidence to the inquiry and developments over the coming months

THE CHALLENGE FACING THE COMMUNITY

125. The House of Lords Select Committee on Science and Technology ended its report of January 1996 on Fish Stock Conservation and Management with the words:

"In their heart of hearts scientists, fishermen, managers and politicians must all know that action must be taken now to prevent a repeat of the Grand Banks fiasco[30] nearer to home. The question is, will they take it?"

126. Five years later many of the dire predictions have proved accurate. The question now is whether the Green Paper will at last call for appropriate measures and whether the Council of Ministers will have the will to act.

Recommendation to the House.

127. The Committee considers that the reform of the Common Fisheries Policy raises important issues of policy to which the attention of the House should be drawn. It therefore makes this Report for debate.

29   Fishing News, 18 December 1998, reporting retrospectively on the WWF conference "Creating a Sea Change: Resolving the Global Fisheries Crisis" held in Lisbon, 14-15 September 1998 (cf Q 237). Back

30   In 1992, after being fished without interruption for almost 500 years, one of the world's most productive fisheries, the Canadian Grand Banks cod fishery off Newfoundland and Labrador, was closed after a total collapse of stocks. Back