EU Council meets on 2012 fishing opportunities

On 28 June 2011 the EU Ministers met in the framework of the Council, in Luxembourg to discuss the Commission's Communication on the Consultation on Fishing Opportunities for 2012, published on 25 May, reports www.megafishnet.com with reference to EU Commission.

Commissioner Damanaki intervened to call for further efforts to reach Maximum Sustainable Yield and to point out that the exploitation of fisheries in data-poor circumstances is not responsible and we should no longer tolerate it as part of our policy.

The Communication sets out how the Commission intends to act on the scientific advice it receives about the state of fish stocks when proposing catch limits and quotas for the next year fish stocks. The document outlines the state of the stocks, and highlights the Commission's continued commitment to long-term plans management and to fishing management in accordance with scientific advice.

In parallel to the discussions at Council, a consultation of stakeholders and the public is running until 1 September on the Commission's website.

Under "Any other business" the Dutch delegation reported on a high-level conference on the future of the Common Fisheries Policy which was organized by the Netherlands in early March, the Irish delegation informed the Council on the current state of play and possible options for the unrestricted fishing of mackerel by Iceland and Faroe Islands. Finally, a number of Member States have requested a point on European funding for the fisheries sector post-2013.