The EU fisheries chief refused to buy the French pressure to lift the ban on trawling for bluefin tuna in the eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean, saying this year’s quota is exhausted. Last week EU regulators have banned fishing for the species by the six EU countries involved in trawling in those waters: Cyprus, France, Greece, Italy, Malta and Spain. France was annoyed by the ban and expressed its dissatisfaction with the European Commission about its catch data and arguing that it still has the right to fish.
On the contrary the Commission has accused France and Italy of quota-busting and under-reporting catches. According to the Commission there is evidence of illegal spotter planes being used by EU vessels to help them identify tuna shoals. EU Fisheries Commissioner Joe Borg in a press statement said that EU figures clearly show that quotas on a national basis have been exhausted and they are based on a multiplicity of sources that can be cross-checked.
The Commission said that it will remain firm on its decision as it does not want a repetition of last year because it works against EU’s credibility and doesn’t help fishermen for future seasons. But France has told that it still disagreed with the Commission’s calculations and disputed their validity. French Fisheries Minister Michel Barnier told that he want to know where the problem is as there is a difference between the Commission’s figures and the ones that we have sent.
