Political scheming in Brussels has posed threat to the thriving bluefin tuna industry. The last chance to save one of the most majestic fish in the sea is on the verge of collapse because of political jockeying in Europe. In the meeting a proposal was discussed to ban the sale of bluefin tuna is being fiercely opposed by Malta, the capital of the lucrative global business, and by its representative in Brussels, the fisheries commissioner, Joe Borg.
Spain and Italy are also believed to be resisting an application to bar trade in bluefin under the Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species (Cites), which would cut off exports to the main market, Japan. The European Commission will decide next week whether the EU will submit the application to a Cites committee meeting in March.
According to conservationists support from Britain, France and other northerly European nations for decisive action is wavering amid the objections. It is said that the Commission is divided, as Borg is fighting his environment counterpart, Stavros Dimas, who supports a ban. Groups such as WWF and Greenpeace fear that negotiations to break the deadlock may result in a compromise of the Cites Appendix II listing, which would allow a limited trade that would be used to launder vast quantities of illegally-caught fish
Despite owning a significant bluefin fleet, France threw its weight behind the plan, to the surprise of conservationists. President Nicolas Sarkozy said that decades of over-fishing would have to end. Britain, Germany and other mostly northerly European states with direct financial interest in the fish also expressed support for a ban.
Aaron McLoughlin, the WWF fisheries representative in Brussels, said that as ever with commissioners, whatever happens at home always grabs special attention. Borg’s spokeswoman, Nathalie Charbonneau, said any suggestion that he had been influenced by the Maltese government was “false and wrong”.
