WRITTEN QUESTION E-0765/03

by Patricia McKenna (Verts/ALE) to the Commission

(12 March 2003)

Subject: Proposed Swedish ban on cod fishing

With respect to the proposal by Sweden to not participate in the cod fishery on several stocks, the Commission is encouraging Sweden to consider adopting technical measures as an alternative. Both Reg. 88/98(1) (technical measures in the Baltic) and Reg. (EC) 850/98(2) (technical measures in other areas) include provisions for Member States to take measures going beyond the minimum requirements set out in these Regulations (Art. 13 of 88/98, Art. 46 of 850/98). Could the Commission please provide a list of the cases in which Member States have availed themselves of this possibility?

For each instance, could the Commission please specify:

- the fishery/fisheries involved, in terms of target species, area and gear type,

- when and for how long the measures were enacted,

- what measures were adopted by the Member State compared to the CFP requirement,

- whether any analysis has been conducted to ascertain if there was any impact from these measures.

It is interesting to note in this respect that, in the Commission's proposal for a new technical measures regulation(3), to replace Reg. (EC) 850/98, there appears to be no article corresponding to Art. 46. Yet in the explanatory memorandum, it is stated that the Commission has ensured that all relevant provisions of Reg. (EC) 850/98 have been maintained. Could the Commission please explain why the article has been dropped?

(1) OJ L 9, 15.1.1998, p. 1.

(2) OJ L 125, 27.4.1998, p. 1.

(3) COM(2002) 672 of 3.12.2002.

Supplementary answergiven by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission

(5 June 2003)

Since the setting up of the Common Fisheries Policy in 1993, the Commission was notified of numerous national technical measures. The Commission provides in the list which is sent direct to the Honourable Member and to Parliament's Secretariat the measures notified to the Commission during the period 2000-2002. That list is representative of the nature of those measures, regarding for instance the species concerned or the area or the gear type.

Given that these measures are taken under national responsibility, the Commission was not obliged to ascertain if there was any impact from these measures and has not carried out an assessment in this respect. It has become clear over the last years that the Community interest in the type of measures which exclusively apply to fishermen from the Member State taking the measure does not justify a systematic prior scrutiny by the Commission.

The possibility for Member States to introduce national measures, as foreseen in Article 46 of Council Regulation (EC) No 850/98 of 30 March 1998 for the conservation of fishery resources through technical measures for the protection of juveniles of marine organisms, is now in part covered by the provisions of Article 10 of Council Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002 of 20 December 2002 on the conservation and sustainable exploitation of fisheries resources under the Common Fisheries Policy(1). Article 10 of Council Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002 no longer provides for prior scrutiny of measures by the Commission before implementation. It, however, limits the possibility for Member States to take national measures to rules applying to their nationals when they fish in waters inside their sovereignty or jurisdiction.

The Commission has sympathy for maintaining the possibility for Member States to adopt technical measures in relation to their own fishermen under a provision similar to Article 46 Article 1 of Council Regulation (EC) No 850/98, where these measures would also apply outside the waters under the sovereignty or jurisdiction of the Member State concerned.

However, the heavy procedures foreseen in paragraphs (2)-(5) of Article 46 of Regulation (EC) No 850/98 for the prior scrutiny of measures by the Commission cannot be justified anymore, as the experience over the last years has demonstrated that this procedure is not necessary for the good functioning of the CFP. The Commission welcomes therefore that Article 10 of Council Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002 no longer foresees such a procedure.

(1) OJ L 358, 31.12.2002.