Sweeping reductions in the EU’s fishing fleet could be made less painful…

Date: 12/09/1996

...according to a European Commission report prepared after consultations with 35 regional fishing organisations. The Commission believes the Multi-Annual Guidance Programme could be improved by closer monitoring of capacity cuts and tougher penalties for failure to reach targets. It also claims the pain will be eased by spreading the measures over six years, allowing greater freedom for vessels fishing more plentiful stocks and exempting small operators fishing in coastal areas, and says better use can be made of Union funds to restructure the sector.