CELEX: 51988PC0043
Language: en
Date: 1988-02-24
Title: PROPOSAL FOR A COUNCIL REGULATION (EEC) amending Regulation (EEC) No 2241/87 establishing certain control measures for fishing activities

ARCHIVES HISTORIQUES
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DOCUMENTS "COM"
COM (88) 43
Vol. 1988/0009
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 ---pagebreak--- COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
                                                        COM(88 ) 43 final
                                                        Brussels / 24 February 1988
                    PROPOSAL             FOR               A
                COUNCIL REGULATION (EEC)
         amending Regulation (EEC) No 2241/87 establishing
         certain control measures for fishing activities
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                               EXP1ANAT0RY MEMORANDUM
Member State fishing vessels frequently land their catches in a Member
State other than the flag state . Existing Ccmnunity legislation seeks to
ensure that this does not make it more difficult for the flag state to
fulfil its duty of preventing the over-fishing of the quotas which have
been allocated to it . Council Regulation n° 2241 /87 ( 1 ) ( the "Control
Regulation ") already requires the Member States to "coordinate" coordinate their
control activities " (Article 1 ( 3 )) ; Article 9 of the Regulation provides
for information about catches landed in another Member State in the course course
of a given month to be ccntnunicated to the flag state via the Cotunission
before the end of the following month . Moreover , Annex IV.4.2.2 . of
Ccnmission Regulation N° 2807 /83 ( 2 ) ( the "Logbook Regulation ") requires
the master of a vessel to send a landing declaration to the flag state
within 48 hours of completion of landing in cases where the vessel lands
in a Member State other than the flag state .
Nevertheless , experience has shown that when vessels land in another
Member State it can often be more difficult in practice , however well the
existing legislation is applied , for the flag state to manage the quotas
on which the vessels fish and to fulfil its duty of preventing the
overfishing of its quotas . For example , in the ( frequent ) situation of
penury of resources in relation to available fishing capacity Member
States may legitimately decide to enact , under Article 5(2 ) of the Basic
Regulation ( Council Regulation ( EEC) No 170/83 of 25 January 1983 ( 3 )) or
as provided for in Article 15 of the Control Regulation , national measures
designed for example to limit the catches on a given quota by the vessels
flying their flag or by their fishermen to a specific limited quantity per
vessel or crew member over a given period of time . It is evident that in
the case of vessels landing outside the flag state the latter is not in a
strong position to check whether such national rules for limiting the
vessels’
vessels’ catches
            catches over
                     over time
                           time are
                                are beina
                                     being respected
                                           respected .. The Member State in which
 (.1 ) O.J. N “ L 207 , 29.07.1987 , p. 1
 ( 2 ) O.J. N° L 276 , 10.10.1983 , p. 1
 ( 3 ) O.J. N° L 24 , 27.01.1983 , p.l
 ---pagebreak---                                     - 2 -
the vessels land is rot in a position to do so either , since it is
ignorant of the flag state 's detailed measures and in any case is not
empowered to enforce these - In these circunst
                                       circumstances the flag state may not
always be able to manage its quotas correctly .
The Ccnraission is therefore of the view that it is necessary to strengthen
the Control Regulation by the adoption of the present proposal with a view
to improving co-operation between Member States in the interests of
preventing overfishing .
The proposed Article 9A reflects discussion in the Council ( Fisheries ) of
14-16 December 1987 . The Council then noted that the strengthening of
control in certain Member States might encourage their fishing vessels to
land more of their catches in other Member States , thus tending to weaken ,
in practice , the flag states' knowledge of and control over the consump¬
tion of their quotas . The proposal therefore supplements the existing pro¬
vision for monthly information by empowering the flag state state to
                                                                  to obtain
                                                                     obtain
from the Member State of landing more rapid and more detailed information
about the landings of its vessels in the latter Member State .
The proposed Article 11A provides in its paragraph 1 that if a Member
State subjects the fishing by its vessels on a certain quota to the
possession of a licence it may cause the provisions of the Article to
apply to the fishing in question , provided that the Ccrrmission and the
other Member States are informed of the quotas and vessels concerned and
of the withdrawal or suspension of a licence . Paragraph 2 provides that
it shall be an offence under Ccmnunity law to land fish from the quota
concerned unless a valid licence is held .
The proposed new Article 11B introduces a special additional mechanism
designed to ensure the proper control of vessels landing outside the flag
state in cases where they have failed to comply with a conservation
measure .. It is provided that the Member State in which such vessels are
measure
registered may require thorn to present their catch for inspection before
landing it in another Member State ; the other Member States and the
Canmission would be informed of the vessels concerned .
                                                                             3
 ---pagebreak---                                      - 3
This additional mechanism is justified for control purposes in the cases
envisaged , in which there has been failure to comply with a conservation
measure .
It is again provided that it shall be an offence under Corrmunity law for a
vessel subject to this procedure to land its catch in another Member State
without being able to provide evidence that it has been inspected by the
flag state .
The additional administrative effort for the Member States of landing will
therefore consist simply of checking whether the relevant vessels of
another Member State are licensed to catch the fish they have on board
and/or have on board a certificate that the catch has been inspected .
These provisions might , however , be of little practical use if the Member
State in which a vessel lands fails to take effective action against the
vessel concerned on discovering the offences created by the new
Articles 11A
Articles  11A and
               and 11B
                   11B .. The proposed new Article 11C therefore provides
that if the Member State of landing does not apply a sufficient sanction
in respect of such offences , the landings may be counted against the quota
of that
of  that Member
          Member State
                  State .. In case the latter has no quota on the stock
concerned or has already fished it , it is provided that the flag state
shall be compensated under existing provisions (Article 11(4 ) of the
Control Regulation ) as if the amount landed were an amount which the flag
state had not been able to fish because of the overfishing of the Member
State of landing .    It is proposed to apply the same mechanism in case
where the Ccmmission has halted fishing on a Member State quota because
the quota is exhausted and the Member State of landing fails to apply a
sufficient sanction in respect of landings which infringe the Ccrmission' s
measure .
                                                                            h
 ---pagebreak---                                      - 4 -
'Hie present proposal reflects the Ccrrmissicn 1 s perception that many Member
States continue to experience difficulties in ensuring that their fishing
vessels respect the conservation rules . These difficulties may be
increased when the vessels operate outside the fisheries zone of the flag
state and in particular when they land their catches in another Member
State .. That is why the proposal seeks to strengthen co-operation between
State
Member States and to bring Member States in whose ports landings take
place by vessels frcm other Member States to take sufficiently seriously
their enforcement duties in respect of those vessels .
However , it remains the case that each Member State has the primary
responsibility for ensuring that the vessels on its register respect the
conservation ru
conservation  rules
                les .. It may be that Member States will continue to have
difficulty in achieving this result in the case of certain of their
vessels .  The Ccrmiission wishes to state that in its view a Member State ,
confronted with persistent failure on the part of one of its fishing
vessels to respect conservation law, may for that reason suspend its
access to the Member State 's quotas or , if necessary , remove the vessel
from its register , with the result that the vessel would no longer be
permitted to fish .
                                                                               5
 ---pagebreak---                             PROPOSAL            FOR     A
                        COUNCIL REGULATION ( EEC )
                 amending Regulation ( EEC ) No 2241/87 establishing
                 certain control measures for fishing activities
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES ,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Economic Ccrrmunity ,
Having regard to Council Regulation ( EEC ) No 170/83 of 25 January 1983
establishing a Ccrrmunity system for the conservation and management of
fishery resources ( 1 ), as amended by the Act of Accession of Spain and
Portugal , and in particular article 11 thereof ,
Having regard to the proposal from the Ccrrmission ,
Whereas experience has shewn the need to strengthen the application of the
fisheries conservation rules by improving co-operation between the Member
States in preventing overfishing ;
Whereas it is necessary to provide for Member States to obtain at their
request more rapid and more detailed information about the landings of
their vessels in another Member State ;
Whereas Article 5(2 ) of Regulation ( EEC ) No 170/83 provides that Member
States     shall  determine the detailed     rules  for the utilisation of the
quotas allocated to them; whereas Article 15 of Council Regulation ( EEC )
No 2241 /87 of 23 July 1987 establishing certain control measures for
fishing activities ( 2 ) recognizes that Member States may make national
control      measures which go beyond the minimum requirements of the
Regulation ;
 ( 1 ) OJ No L 24 of 27.01.1983 , p.    1.
 ( 2 ) QJ No L 207 of 27.07.1987 , p.   1.
                                                                               i
 ---pagebreak---                                    - 2 -
Whereas these detailed    rules  and  national measures  may   include the
subjecting of fishing on a given stock to the possession of a licence and
may also include , min case where there has been failure to respect a
conservation measure , requiring a vessel to have its catch inspected by
the Member State of registration before landing in another Member State ;
Whereas , in order to ensure the effectiveness of such detailed rules or
national control measures , provision should be made allowing compliance
therewith to be controlled and breaches sanctioned not only by the Member
State of registration but also, under certain conditions , by the Member
State in whose ports or within whose maritime waters the vessels in
question land or tranship their catches ;
Whereas the failure by a Member State to sanction breaches of the detailed
rules or national control measures of another Member State will weaken the
ability of the latter to ensure compliance with the regime of conservation
and management of fishery resources ; whereas it is therefore necessary to
provide for a Member State to suffer a reduction of its own fishing
possibilities if it fails bo apply an adequate sanction in respect of such
breaches ; whereas such a reduction should also apply in cases where a
Member State has failed properly to sanction landings of catches made from
a quota on which fishing has been prohibited by the Ccrrmission ;
Whereas it is therefore appropriate to amend Council Regulation ( EEC )
No 2241/87 establishing certain control measures for fishing activities ,
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION :
                                                                           ?
 ---pagebreak---                                          3 -
                                    Article 1
Regulation ( EEC ) No 2241 /87 is hereby anended as folLov.s :
1 . The following Article 9A is added :
                                   "Article 9A
    1 . Without prejudice to Article 9 , Member States shall , at the request
        of the Member State concerned , provide information on landings or
        transhipments in their ports or within their maritime waters by
        fishing vessels flying the flag of or registered in the requesting
        Member State of a particular stock or group of stocks subject to a
        quota allocated to that Member State .
        The information shall include the name and external identification
        letters and numbers of the vessel in question , the quantity of the
        particular stock or group of stocks landed or transhipped by the
        vessel and the date and place of the landing or transhipment .
        The information shall be provided within 72 hours of the landing or
        transhipment or such longer period as may be specified by the
        requesting Member State .
    2 . The Member State of registration shall inform the Ccrmission of such
        requests . The Member State of landing or transhipment shall provide
        a copy of such information to the Ccrmission at the same time as it
        provides the information to the Member State of registration ."
2 . The following Articles 11A, 11B , 11C and 11D are added :
                                  "Artide 11A
    1 . The provisions of this Article apply to fishing activities by ves¬
        sels flying the flag of or registered in a Member State on a quota
        allocated to that Member State , if the Member State in pursuance of
        Article 5(2 ) of Regulation ( EEC ) No 170/83 makes such fishing acti¬
        vities subject to a licensing system and
 ---pagebreak---                                    - 4 -
    i)    informs the Ccrmiission and the other Member States of the quota
          concerned ;
    ii )  immediately upon issuing a licence informs the Commission and
          the other Member States of the name and external identification
          letters and numbers of the licensed vessel ; and
    iii ) immediately informs the Commission and the other Member States
          of the withdrawal or suspension of such a licence .
2 . It shall be prohibited to catch , retain on board , tranship or land
    fish frcm the quota concerned unless the vessel is licensed to fish
    on that quota and the licence has not been withdrawn or suspended .
                                Article 11B
1 . Where the competent authority of a Member State has recorded that a
    fishing vessel flying the flag of or registered in that Member State
    has failed to comply with rules concerning conservation or control
    measures adopted by the Community or by the Member State under
    Article 5(2 ) of Regulation ( EEC ) No 170/83 or Article 15 of the
    present Regulation , the Member State may adopt with respect to the
    vessel concerned an additional control measure providing that , for a
    maximum of one year frcm the recording of the infringement , catches
    from a stock or group of stocks subject to a quota allocated to that
    Member State may be landed or transhipped in a port or within the
    maritime waters of another Member State or of a third country only
    if the vessel has on board a document certified by the Member State
    of registration and stating that the latter has inspected the catch .
    The Member State of registration shall inform the Commission and the
    other Member States of the name and external identification letters
    and numbers of the vessel on which the said additional control mea¬
    sure has been imposed and of the quota concerned .
2 . It shall be prohibited for a vessel subject to the additional con¬
    trol measure referred to in paragraph 1 to land or tranship in a
    port or within the maritime waters of a Member State other than the
    Member State of registration or of a third country catches subject
    to the quota concerned unless the said certified document is on
    board the vessel .
                                                                           β
 ---pagebreak---                                        5 -
                                  Article 11C
   1 . The Member State of landing or transhipment shall take in respect of
       a breach of the third sub-paragraph of Article 11(3 ), of Article 11A
       or of Article 11B legal or administrative action resulting in either
       - confiscation of the fish which is unlawfully landed or tranship¬
         ped , with no income in respect of that fish accruing to persons
         responsible for the vessel , or
       - a fine at least equal to the value of that fish .
   2 . If the Member State of landing or transhipment is not the Member
       State of registration and does not take the legal or administrative
       action referred to in the previous paragraph , the landing or tran¬
       shipment may be counted against the quota of the former Member
       State .
       The quantities of fish to be counted against the quota of that
       Member State shall be decided by the Ccmvission after consultation
       with both the Member States concerned and ' acting , in the case of a
       breach of Article 11A or Article 11B , at the request of the Member
       State of registration .
       If the Member State of landing or transhipment has no relevant quota
       remaining , the provisions of Article 11(4 ) shall apply mutatis
       mutandis as if the quantities of fish unlawfully landed or tranship¬
       ped were the amount of the prejudice suffered by the Member State of
       registration .
                                  Article 11D
   Detailed rules for the implementation of Articles 11A, 11B , and 11C
   shall be adopted if necessary in accordance with the procedure laid
   down in Article 14 of Regulation ( EEC) No 170/83 ."
                                   Article 2
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable
in all Member States .
Done at                    1988 .
                                                                                 I
                                           For the Council
                                           The President
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