(Finance) – The European Parliament has approved the new regulatory measures for the control of fishing with 438 votes in favour, 146 against and 40 abstentions. According to the new rules, all boats they will have to bring a device on board location which allows national authorities to locate and identify them at regular intervals. Someone artisanal fishing vessels they can be exempted from this obligation until 2030 and all artisanal fishing fleets will have up to four years to adapt to the new requirements.
Furthermore, for the first time pleasure boats will also have to declare their catches, through systems electronic prepared by the national authorities or the Commission. Again, all EU vessels will have to register and declare theirs catches in a digitalized way. Once formally adopted by the Council, the regulation will enter into force 20 days after its publication in the Official Journal. However, several measures will be implemented gradually, giving Member States and fishing fleets sufficient time to adapt.
For the rapporteur Clara Aguilera (S&D, ES), “a balanced agreement has been reached for the EU fisheries sector. The new control rules will be harmonized and more transparent, with fully digital. Fishermen will have four years to adapt to the changes and the small-scale fishing sector will benefit obligations Of reporting simplified. In this way MEPs respond to consumers’ demand for information on the origin of all the food they eat.”
The regulation also addresses the current large disparities between EU countries regarding sanctions. The value of fishery products caught by a vessel will now define the minimum level of fines applied in the event of serious breaches of the rules. The margin of tolerance – the difference between the estimated fish caught and the weight at the port of landing – will be set at 10% per species, with some exceptions for catches of small volumes and for some particular species.
To ensure compliance with the so-called disembarkation obligationEU ships of 18 meters or more which may present a high risk of non-compliance will be required to have on board monitoring electronic remotely, including closed circuit television, at the latest four years after the entry into force of the legislation. Operators will need to retain information from across the entire chain supplyingfrom sea to plate, including the first sale up to the retail stage of fishery and aquaculture products.
(Photo: © European Union 2019 – Source: EP)