§ Mr. SayeedTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what her policy is on the introduction of a system of individual transferable quotas across the EU. [64544]
§ Mr. MorleyUnder the current EU rules the Total Allowable Catch for each fish stock is apportioned between Member States according to the principle of "relative stability". It is then for individual Member States to decide how the quota should be allocated to their fishing industries. We believe that this arrangement offers significant advantages in terms of flexibility and meeting the different needs of the fishing industries in different Member States. While we would, of course, consider carefully any proposal for a system of individual transferable quotas across the EU, it is not clear that such a system would yield greater benefits than the current arrangements.