WRITTEN QUESTION No. 692/99 by Sebastiano MUSUMECI Measures to support swordfish fishing in the Mediterranean
Date: 1999-03-26
Institutions: European Parliament, MUSUMECI
Subjects: Baltic Sea, Italy, common fisheries policy, fishing net, fishing regulations, industrial conversion, sea fish

C 370/90

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

21.12.1999

Answer given by Sir Leon Brittan on behalf of the Commission

(21 April 1999)

Agreement in the Wassennaar arrangement on the control of encryption products with a key length of
more than 64 bits was reached by consensus of all participating states, including the 15 Member States.

Controls on encryption aim to avoid unwanted military or terrorist use of such products. A licensing
obligation does not signify a ban on export but rather a control by the competent authorities with a view
to ascertaining that the end-use is for legitimate purposes.

(1999/C 370/123)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0692/99

by Sebastiano Musumeci (NI) to the Commission

(26 March 1999)

Subject: Measures to support swordfish fishing in the Mediterranean

The recent proposal by the Council of Fishery Ministers prohibits all Community vessels from using
driftnets for swordfish fishing with effect from 31 December 1999.

However, the Council has granted a derogation to vessels fishing in the Baltic, enabling them to carry on
board, as well as nets of the authorized length of 2 500 metres, additional nets of up to 21 kilometres, and
even 3 000 metres of spare length.

Such a difference in treatment compared with other Member States clearly penalizes Mediterranean
fishermen, and the proposal to ban driftnet fishing will mean that the Italian restructuring plan cannot
be put into practice.

Can the Commission say what steps it intends to take to avoid unfair measures and, while bearing in mind
the need to preserve fish stocks, ensure that one of the few genuinely productive sectors of the Sicilian and
Mediterranean economy does not suffer any further damage?

Answer given by Mrs Bonino on behalf of the Commission

(21 April 1999)

The measures adopted by the Council on the phasing-out of driftnets (1), are not applicable in the Baltic
given the special characteristics of the salmon fisheries of this sea. The threat for the non-targeted
populations posed by driftnet fishing is very low.

As far as the Italian plan for the re-conversion of driftnets is concerned, the Council had already given its
formal support to it before the adoption of the above-mentioned regulation (2). Moreover, the Council has
recently adopted a new decision (3), applicable to all Community vessels engaged in driftnet fishing for
large migratory species (first of all swordfish and tunas). The conditions for the re-conversion have been
clarified for the Italian fisheries and extended to other Member States.

(1) Council Regulation (EC) 1239/98 of 8 June 1998 amending Regulation (EC) 894/97 laying down certain technical

measures for the conservation of fishery resources, OJ L 171, 17.6.1998.

(2) Council Decision 97/292/EC of 28 April 1997 on a specific measure to encourage Italian fishermen to diversify

out of certain fishing activities, OJ L 121, 13.5.1997.

(3) Council Decision 99/27/EC of 17 December 1998 on a specific measure to encourage diversification out of certain

fishing activities and amending Decision 97/292/EC, OJ L 8, 14.1.1999.