Commission resists calls to relax fish quotas

The European Commission is expected to recommend next week that there should be no loosening of fish quotas for 2008, despite calls for easing quotas on cod following a limited recovery of North Sea cod stocks.

On Wednesday (28 November) the Commission will make its proposals for quotas and total allowable catches (TACs) for 2008. In line with its policy statement - and tradition - the Commission’s recommendations on TACs and quotas are likely to be more generous than those recommended by independent scientists.

The final quotas will be decided by the Council of Ministers in December. On average, the TACs adopted by the Council are 42-57% higher than levels recommended by scientists.

In October, the International Council for the Exploration of the Seas (ICES) concluded that pressure from over-fishing was still too high, although it found that cod stocks had started to recover. Some fishermen would like to see more generous quotas but Carol Phua at WWF warned member states that full recovery could be jeopardised if quotas were loosened. "Some member states feel that it is time to give fishermen a reward for the reductions that they have made in the last few years, but that is exactly the wrong thing to do," she said.

The Commission’s proposals on quotas will come at a moment that fisheries ministers will renew their attention to Europe’s endangered bluefin stocks. On Tuesday (27 November) ministers are expected to agree to implement a recovery plan for bluefin tuna.

Earlier this year, the Commission proposed a multi-annual recovery plan for bluefin tuna following recommendations from international scientists. The plan would lead to a gradual reduction in catches and a joint international inspection scheme. While a majority of ministers is expected to approve the plan, more politically sensitive questions on quotas lie ahead.

At next week’s agriculture and fisheries council ministers are also expected to vote in favour of abolishing import duties on cereals. The proposal to scrap import duties on goods such as wheat, barley and maize comes at a time of record prices for cereals. This week, Mariann Fischer Boel, European commissioner for agriculture, said that recent price rises had to be seen in the context of historically low prices for the last 10-15 years.

The European Commission is expected to recommend next week that there should be no loosening of fish quotas for 2008, despite calls for easing quotas on cod following a limited recovery of North Sea cod stocks.