EU’s fishing quota system is a prospect raising concerns among environmentalists and Brussels officials alike. French presidency of European Union raked the issue all over again to settle it. Paris asks in a preparatory document ahead the meeting of European fisheries ministers in Brussels that how long the TAC (Total Allowable Catch) and quotas system remain the cornerstone of the common fisheries policy?
European Union agrees that the fisheries policy needs revising but has one main priority in mind; reducing the size of the European fleet. However, France wants more flexibility in the quota system but the European Commission has been calling for a major cut in fishing capacity, which it believes is the only way the quotas will be respected as the current fleet is capable of catching “between two and three times the maximum sustainable yield.
The fishermen criticized the European Commission for banning industrial tuna fishing during the June peak of the season. It is fact that Mediterranean tuna was overfished mostly due to their success with fish lovers, especially with the growing demand for sushi. It is said that nearly 70 percent of the Mediterranean catch goes to Japan and prices keep rising. This move invited loads of criticism from Europe’s leading tuna fishing nations France, Italy and Spain, which accused the commission of using faulty figures and demanded the decision be scrapped.
Paris also wants to introduce multi-year planning to give more certainty to a sector which has to deal with new quotas and new scientific reports on fish stocks every year. French fisheries minister Michel Barnier explained that they want to improve the dialogue between the scientists and marine fishermen to avoid the arguments and polemic. The scientists and environmentalists believe that letting the market rule the waves will put the responsibility firmly on captains’ shoulders and help reverse the depletion of fish stocks.
