§ 3.19 p.m.
§ The Earl of Clanwilliam asked Her Majesty's Government:
§ What action they are taking to prevent the possible total disappearance of fish stocks in the waters affected by the common fisheries policy.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Defence (Earl Howe)My Lords, the European Union's common fisheries policy exists to provide for sustainable exploitation of the fisheries resources in the waters of member states. The UK fully supported the recommendations in the direct declaration adopted at the recent North Sea conference to improve the operation of the common fisheries policy. To that end, the UK will continue to press for and to support appropriate Commission proposals to improve regulation and control of fishing activity and to improve the state of scientific knowledge on which to base such proposals.
The Earl of ClanwilliamMy Lords, I thank my noble friend for his Answer and congratulate him on his well deserved promotion to the Ministry of Defence. No doubt his mind is more consumed with nuclear weapons than fishing boats at the moment. Therefore, I shall not 1243 press the international point about the importance of the UN agreement on Straddle stocks but refer instead to the common fisheries policy promotion, which does not appear to be working. I wonder whether my noble friend will consider bringing forward the question of the common fisheries policy at the forthcoming IGC where we shall have a veto—there will not be majority voting—so that we can consider the number of boats at sea. Perhaps he could also mention the fact that the common fisheries policy is trying to limit the number of Spanish boats at sea—
The Earl of ClanwilliamMy Lords, would my noble friend comment on the fact that the common fisheries policy is trying to limit the number of Spanish boats at sea, while the European Commission is busy commissioning new fishing boats for the Spanish fishing fleet, and—
Earl HoweMy Lords, I thank my noble friend for his kind remarks and entirely agree with him that the conservation of stocks is a prime duty of the European Community. That is why the annual agreement on total allowable catches is conducted against a background of expert scientific advice. My right honourable friend the former Minister established a group to look at all the options for improving the CFP. It is expected to have completed its task by the end of the year. It is a wide-ranging review and appropriate recommendations will be brought to the attention of the European Commission. Meanwhile, as your Lordships will be aware, the central issue is that the available fishing effort is greater than the fish stocks can stand. To that end, we aim to reduce the size of our fleet in common with other member states, including Spain, to meet our MAGP targets through decommissioning, for example.
§ Lord CarterMy Lords, as this is the noble Earl's last appearance with the agriculture brief, perhaps I may thank him from this Dispatch Box for the unfailing courtesy and helpfulness that he has shown in his three-and-a-quarter years at the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and wish him well in his new post.
In the circumstances, perhaps it will be appropriate if I ask the Minister an easy question today. Does he agree that the common fisheries policy, as it has developed, is beginning to make the common agricultural policy look like a beacon of common sense and sweet reason?
Earl HoweMy Lords, I am extremely grateful to the noble Lord. I too have much enjoyed and appreciated our exchanges over the Dispatch Boxes over the past three-and-a-quarter years. I very much appreciate the constructive way in which he has approached our exchanges. In reply to the noble Lord's question, to put it at its mildest, the CFP is far from perfect. In particular, it is too bureaucratic. As I have said, we are reviewing our approach to it and shall continue to press for improvements. However, there are benefits as well as drawbacks to the CFP and any changes will need to be considered with great care.
Lord Campbell of CroyMy Lords, does my noble friend agree that since many fish migrate between waters near the shores of different countries, regulation and restraint are what matter most in the areas in and near north-west Europe because fishing methods and technology are now lethally effective?
Earl HoweMy Lords, my noble friend draws attention to an extremely important point. Although one may have capacity targets, total allowable catches and technical conservation measures, they have to be enforced properly. It is perhaps a truism to say that fish are no respecters of boundaries, but the CFP is a more effective vehicle for policing those boundaries and the entitlements of member states than unilateral action could ever be.
§ Lord Beaumont of WhitleyMy Lords, is the Minister aware that efforts to reduce fishing by decommissioning seem to be more than outweighed by the efficiency of the vessels which catch the fish? As there is considerable evidence, as submitted to the North Sea ministerial conference, that supplies of cod in the North Sea are likely to fall below what is renewable, what do the Government propose to do?
Earl HoweMy Lords, the Government's decommissioning plan is only part of a raft of measures which we hope will deliver the necessary results in terms of conserving stocks, which is most important. The Government recognise that in the longer term the state of North Sea cod stocks remains a matter of concern. It is important that total allowable catches are set at prudent levels. However, given the large size of that stock, which at current reduced levels still numbers over 500 million fish, and its extensive distribution, it is not thought likely that North Sea cod will become extinct, as has been predicted in some quarters.