Proposal for a COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) amending Regulation (EC) No 3699/93 laying down the criteria and arrangements regarding Community structural assistance in the fisheries and aquaculture sector and the processing and marketing of its products
Date: 1995-12-05
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU financial instrument, Structural Funds, aquaculture, common fisheries policy, financing policy, fishing fleet

iV  * 

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COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN  COMMUNITIES 

Brussels, 05.12.1995 
COM(95)  (>27  luial 

95/0319  (CNS) 

Proposal  for a 

COUNCIL  REGULATION  (EC) 

amending  Regulation  (EC)  No 3699/93  laying  down  the criteria  and  arrangements 
regarding  Community  structural  assistance  in the fisheries  and aquaculture  sector 
and  the processing  and  marketing  of  its products 

(presented  by the Commission) 

EXPLANATORY  MEMORANDUM 

1. 

System  of  state  aids  for measures  to  adjust fishing  effoit 

Article  8 of  Regulation  (EC)  No  3699/93  encourages  Member  States to  take  measures  to 
adjust  fishing  effort  to  achieve  the  objectives  of  the  multiannual  guidance  programmes. 

The  adjustment  of  fishing  effort  within  the  meaning  of  structural  measures  is  mainly 
guaranteed  by  the  implementation  of permanent  cessation  measures  and  the  reorientation 
of  fishing  activities  by  the  formation  of joint  enterprises.  Permanent  cessation  measures 
comprise  scrapping,  transfer  to  a third  country  and  re-assignment  to  activities  other  than 
fishing. 

State  aids  are  granted  to  the  beneficiaries  of  such  measures.  The  ceiling  for  such  aids  is 
set  by  the  scale  in  Annex  IV  to  Regulation  (EC)  No  3699/93,  which  applies  to  vessels 
up  to  15 years  old.  The  premiums  are  increased  by  1.5% per  year  for  vessels  less  than 
I 5 years  old  and  are  decreased  by  1.5% per  year  for  vessels  older  than  that. 

2. 

Rules  of  access  to  fish resources and  physical  value  of  vessels 

The  restrictions  placed  on  the  rules  of  access  to  fish  resources  by  the  introduction  of 
fishing  licence  schemes  have  brought  about  an  increase  in  the  physical  value  of  the 
scrapping  of  vessels,  which  is  no  longer  purely  the  residual  physical  value  of  the  asset 
but  also  the  value  of  the  fishing  right  associated  with  it  (the  non-physical  value). 

Under  such  circumstances  it  is  logical  to  allow  that  from  a  certain  age  onward  a  vessel 
has  a  constant  value  which  is  that  of  the  fishing  right  associated  with  it. 

The purpose  of  the  proposal  is  to  encourage  the  definitive  withdrawal  from  the  fleet  of 
vessels  more  than  30  years  old.  To  that  end,  the  ceiling  for  the  permanent  withdrawal 
premium  will  remain  constant  whatever  the age of  the vessel  withdrawn  beyond  that  age 
The  ceiling  is  fixed  at  that  for  vessel  thirty  years  old. 

3. 

Limitations  on  the  scope  of  measures  for temporary  cessation  of  activities 

faking  account  of  the  special  circumstances  for  temporary  cessation  of  fishing  activities 
envisaged  in  Article  14 of  Regulation  3699/93  it  seems  logical  to  limit  the  scope  of  the 
measures  with  a  ceiling  for  Community  aid. 

On  the  basis  of  an  estimate  of  costs  previously  recorded  by  the  services  for  operations 
of  this  type  it  seems  sensible  to  limit  the  costs  of  these  measures  for  each  calender  year 
to  200  000 ecus or  0.5% of  the  funds  forseen  in the  financial  plan  for  each  Member  State 
for  the  year  concerned. 

4. 

Form  of  modification  proposed 

Simple  written  modification  of  Article  14 and  of  Annex  IV,  point  L!(a)  fourth  indent  of 
Regulation  (EC)  No  3699/93. 

COUNCIL  REGULA HON  (EC)  No 
of 

94 

amending  Regulation  (EC)  No  3699/93  laying  down  the  criteria  and  arrangements 
regarding  Community  structural  assistance  in  the  fisheries  and  aquaculture  sector 
and  the  processing  and  marketing  of  its  products 

THE  COUNCIL  OF  THE  EUROPEAN  UNION, 

Having  regard  to  the  Treaty  establishing  the  European  Community, 

Having  regard  to  Council  Regulation  (EEC)  No  2080/93  of  20  July  1993  laying  down 
provisions  for  implementing  Regulation  (EEC)  No  2052/88  as  regards  the  financial 
instrument  for  fisheries  guidance,  and  in  particular  Article  6  thereof 

Having  regard  to  the  proposal  from  the  Commission,1 

Having  regard  to  the  opinion  of  the  European  Parliament,2 

Having  regard  to  the  opinion  of  the  Economic  and  Social  Committee,' 

Whereas  national  and  Community  rules  are  at  the  heart  of  a  strengthening  of  the 
conditions controlling  access to fish  resources, in particular by the introduction  of  systems 
of  fishing  licences  and  permits;  whereas  those  new  restrictions  on  access  are  having  the 
effect  of  increasing  the  scrapping  value of vessels, in particular  those more  than  30 years 
old; whereas this increase in value has made withdrawals of fishing  vessels more  difficult 
to  guarantee  than  in  the  past; 

Whereas  the  current  system  of  premiums  for  scrapping  a  vessel  and  for  setting  up joint 
enterprises  provides  for  a  constant  reduction  of  1.5%  per  year  in  premiums  for  vessels 
more  than  I 5 years  old;  whereas  experience  has  shown  that  that  year-by-year  reduction 
in  premiums  has  made  them  insufficient  to  guarantee  the  withdrawal  of  the  oldest  of  the 
vessels; 

Whereas  provision  should  be  made  to  ensure  that  preference  is  given  to  the  withdrawal 
from  the  fleet  of  the  oldest  of  the  vessels;  whereas  the  premiums  should  therefore  be 
maintained  at  a  sufficiently  high  level  to  guarantee  the  withdrawal  of  that  category  of 
vessels; 

Whereas  for  the  financial  aid  for  FIFG  in  the  case  of  temporary  cessation  of  activities, 
taking  account  that  this  type  of  intervention,  must  remain  an  exceptional  measure,  it  is 
advisable  to  set  a  ceiling  for  the  funds  allocated  to  this  measure, 

OJ  No  C 
OJ  No C 
O.I  No  C 

HAS  ADOPTED  THIS  REGULATION: 

Article  1 

Regulation  (EC)  n°  3699/93  is  hereby  amended  as  follows: 

1  Article  14, the  following  paragraph  is  added: 

"This  grant  cannot  exceed,  for  each  calender  year  and  for  each  Member  State,  200  000 
ecus  or  0.5%  of  the  funds  forseen  in  the  financial  plan  for  each  Member  State  for  the 
year  concerned,  whichever  amount  is the  greater." 

2  In  the  last  indent  of  Annex  IV,  point  1.1(a),  to  Regulation  (EC)  No  3699/93,  the 
following  phrase  is  hereby  added: 

", and  up  to 30 years  old, the  age beyond  which  premiums  are  limited  to  the amount  for 
vessels  thirty  years  old." 

Article  2 

This  Regulation  shall  enter  into  force  on  the  seventh  day  following  its publication  in  the 
Official  Journal  of  the  European  Communities. 

This  Regulation  shall  be  binding  in  its  entirety  and  directly  applicable  in  all  Member 
States. 

Done  at  ...  , 

For  the  Council 

ISSN 0254-1475 

COM(95) 627  final 

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ISBN 92-77-97226-2 

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