‘The sea is part of my constitution’

"Coming from where I come from, you always live close to the sea." Joe Borg had apparently little in his professional background to prepare him for the job of European commissioner for fisheries and maritime affairs, but as a native of Malta, the 54-year-old lawyer, formerly parliamentary secretary in the foreign affairs ministry, says saltwater has always been on his mind.

"The sea is part of my constitution," he explains. "If you mention issues relating to the sea to people like me there is immediate interest."

He hopes to raise the same interest in all Europeans, as the man charged with overseeing the development of the EU’s first ever single maritime policy.

Borg says the signs so far are good. Maritime policy has been the subject of 100 European conferences since a green paper was launched last summer setting out the Commission’s maritime idea. At least 30 more are expected before the consultation ends this June.

The consultation website has also attracted more than 100 contributions, in addition to the 300 received before the green paper was published.

"The green paper was about trying to raise ideas," says the commissioner. "It has been very successful."

The year-long consultation will be followed by a report and general communication this autumn, says Borg, but adds "obviously this is not enough". "We will also need to come up with a common vision, based on the consultation ideas - an action plan."

"This is not achievable overnight," he says, "but we already have an indication of what could be done in some areas."

This includes the possibility of "extensive and comprehensive" sea-bed mapping, says the commissioner. Borg says there is widespread interest in a pan-European map to help the planning of various maritime projects, including transport routes, oil pipelines and fishing.

He says the Commission could also help national maritime organisations work together, by setting up ‘clusters’ of similar interests. This could include port infrastructure clusters, to make better use of the coastline and its facilities.

Similarly, maritime research could be co-ordinated at EU level. "Quite often there are multiple research projects in the same area," says Borg. "We need a network to share results and to identify what is not covered."

He says that EU-level recommendations are more likely than legislation, "although mandatory provisions are not excluded where absolutely necessary".

The commissioner will work to identify the approach best-suited to each of the various economic, social and environmental issues covered by the strategy.

But he believes that, in contrast to EU strategies in many other areas, the maritime policy is unlikely to be given a single end-date for implementation.

"We should identify timeframes," says Borg, "but not curtail things with a specific deadline. In this area, several things are not possible today but might be five years from now."

He says the maritime policy relates to politics and policies in a very general way, making one deadline impractical.

For instance, he says, many aspects of maritime policy are closely linked to the Lisbon Agenda for growth and jobs, which is due to be fully implemented by 2010. "If we do things better with seas and oceans it will lead to better economic prospects," he says. "Improvements in the transport, energy, research, fisheries and tourism sectors will all mean better job prospects."

But at the same time maritime policies should help meet environmental objectives. Here Borg says the importance of seas and oceans cannot be over-estimated. "Look at climate change, for instance," he says. "Maritime policies have to take account of two sides: the state of the oceans is itself affected by climate change and at the same time maritime transport and industries contribute to carbon dioxide emissions."

One more challenge for any future maritime policy will be finding a way to make sea vessels cleaner, he says.

Borg is sure there is high-level Commission support for a maritime policy. "My first contact with José Manuel Barroso as Commission president was when he offered me the fisheries and maritime policy job," he says. "I immediately realised it was something he feels strongly about."

Barroso had been involved with developing the first national EU maritime policy in Portugal before becoming Commission president. Borg plans to follow his example.

"This is a challenging job," he says, "but that was part of the attraction. It is good to feel that you are contributing to the development of a sector."

"Coming from where I come from, you always live close to the sea." Joe Borg had apparently little in his professional background to prepare him for the job of European commissioner for fisheries and maritime affairs, but as a native of Malta, the 54-year-old lawyer, formerly parliamentary secretary in the foreign affairs ministry, says saltwater has always been on his mind.