WRITTEN QUESTION E-2299/00

by Rosa Miguélez Ramos (PSE) to the Commission

(11 July 2000)

Subject: Trade relations in the fisheries sector between the EU and the applicant countries

There were interesting references in the press to the speech given by Commissioner Fischler in Warsaw on 8 June 2000, in particular concerning the standstill in the accession negotiations with Poland as regards the liberalisation of agricultural trade. It would seem that the main obstacle is import duties on certain articles and the fact that the Polish agri-foodstuffs industries are finding it difficult to comply with European requirements in the area of food safety.

In view of the fact that Mr Fischler is the Commissioner not only for Agriculture but also for Fisheries and various applicant countries have great fishing potential, can the Commission say:

- what the trade balance in fishery products between the applicant countries and the EU is;

- how it intends to ensure that the fishery products which the EU imports from the applicant countries meet the criteria of hygiene, health and phytosanitary standards;

- what it considers to be the main problems for negotiations with these countries in the fishery sector;

- whether in the applicant countries there are direct aids to fishing businesses in the industry or fishermen which conflict with Community legislation?

Answer given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission

(1 August 2000)

The trade balance for fisheries products with the 12 candidate countries with which accession negotiations are open represents an overall deficit for the Community of 86 million in 1999.

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The details for each of these candidate countries are transmitted directly to the Honourable Member and to Parliament's Secretariat.

The current status of these candidate countries in relation to Commission Decision 97/296/EC of 22 April 1997 drawing up the list of third countries from which the import of fishery products is authorized for human consumption(1), is given in the table below.

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Three of the accession countries are listed in part I of the Annex of the above Decision (the so-called fully harmonised list) and are covered by a specific decision under Council Directive 91/493/EEC of 22 July 1991 laying down the health conditions for the production and the placing on the market of fishery products(2). Poland is expected to join Part I soon on the basis of a favourable mission by the Commission and guarantees received from the Polish authorities.

All the other candidate countries except two are listed in Part II of the Annex (the so-called pre-listed countries) meeting the terms of Article 2(2) of Council Decision 95/408/EC of 22 June 1995 on the conditions for drawing up, for an interim period, provisional lists of third country establishments from which Member States are authorized to import certain products of animal origin, fishery products or live bivalve molluscs(3). The validity of the latter Decision is being extended from the end of this year to 31 December 2003. Bulgaria and Slovakia are not on the Community list and imports of fishery products from those countries are not permitted at present.

None of these candidate countries are currently listed among the 14 countries in the Annex to Commission Decision 97/20/EC of 17 December 1996 establishing the list of third countries fulfilling the equivalence conditions for the production and placing on the market of bivalve molluscs, echinoderms, tunicates and marine gastropods(4).

Considering that candidate countries generally accept the Community fisheries acquis, the Commission considers that the central issue in the enlargement negotiations on fisheries is the establishment by the applicant countries of adequate administrative structures to implement the common fisheries policy. Pre-accession instruments are available to contribute to institution-building in the applicant countries, in particular assistance through the PHARE programme. Funding with respect to the fisheries sector can be considered, even though the limited resources imply focusing on priorities.

In the light of the limited budgetary resources dedicated to fisheries in candidate countries, their existing national aid schemes only represent a very small fraction of the public aid available to the fisheries sector in existing Member States. The national aid schemes must necessarily be in conformity with Community state aid rules upon accession.

(1) OJ L 122, 14.5.1997.

(2) OJ L 268, 24.9.1991.

(3) OJ L 243, 11.10.1995.

(4) OJ L 6, 10.1.1997.