§ Mrs. HumbleTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what was the outcome of the Fisheries Council held in Brussels on 18 and 19 December; and if he will make a statement. [22179]
§ Mr. MorleyI represented the United Kingdom at the meeting of the Fisheries Council in Brussels on 18–19 December, together with my noble Friend the Under-Secretary of State for Scotland.
The Council agreed by qualified majority, with Ireland voting against, the total allowable catches and quotas to apply in 1998 in Community waters.
Throughout the negotiations, I stressed the need to be guided by the advice of the scientists and to be cautious in our management of fish stocks while at the same time taking account of the practical realities and economic needs of fishermen. I believe that the final package struck that balance.
In order to conserve stocks, TACs were reduced where necessary. In other cases, where the state of stocks justified it, TACs were increased. At the end of the negotiations, the total UK quotas agreed for the stocks of most importance to our fishermen were some 26,000 tonnes higher in cod equivalent terms than the quotas being discussed at the start of the negotiations. This increase is worth approximately £11 million to the industry and means our total quotas in cod equivalent terms for these stocks are five per cent. above the 1997 level. Higher quotas for some stocks combined with the fleet reductions which have been taking place should increase the profitability of our fishermen.
I invoked the Hague Preference on all stocks where it was necessary to do so.
I am very pleased to say that the agreement included a new TAC for sandeels and new allocations for five other North Sea stocks. These new controls will limit uptake in some sensitive fisheries and their establishment represents a significant advance in conservation. Moreover, I secured changes which greatly improved the UK' s share of the TACs for North Sea sprat and herring by-catches.
As well as for the first time introducing a catch limit on sandeels in the North Sea, the Council agreed further restrictions on industrial fisheries by reducing the TAC set for herring by-catches in industrial fisheries.
The Council did not agree the new North Sea TACs proposed for anglerfish, megrim, turbot, mixed flatfish, and skates and rays. It did, however, make a commitment to
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United Kingdom: Decision on MAGP IV Situation 1 January 1997 Objective 31 December 1996 Objective 31 December 2001 Stocks Segment Fishery Catch composition (per cent.) Pilot rate (per cent.) Weighted reduction (per cent.) GT4 kW GT4 kW GT4 x t (1000) kW x t (1000) GT4 kW GT4 x t (1000) kW x t (1000) Small scale coastal — <10 metres — — — 20,120 286,367 21,901 286,154 — — 21,901 286,154 — — Sub total 20,120 286,367 21,901 286,154 — — 21,901 286,154 reach agreement on these TACs by 30 March 1998 and, in order to avoid irresponsible fishing, the Council and Commission agreed our suggestion that no fish caught after 1 January 1998 will count towards track records under the new TACs.
Within the package, there was agreement to the allocation of the Western waters horse mackerel TAC in which I secured an increase in the UK's share from 8.28 per cent. to 9.81 per cent.
I also succeeded in securing an increase to 22.9 per cent. as the United Kingdom's share of the TAC for Atlanto-Scandian herring. This will replace the 19.85 per cent. share imposed on the UK at the April Fisheries Council.
The Council agreed unanimously to access and quota arrangements for 1998 with neighbouring non-Member States. Declines in the stocks managed by Norway mean that Community and UK fishing opportunities have been reduced at North Norway. We have, however, retained our quotas in Faroese, Greenland and Iceland waters at the same levels as in 1997.
The Council also agreed unanimously to the allocation of the Community's 1998 quotas in the waters covered by the North-West Atlantic Fisheries Organisation, together with technical conservation and control measures applicable to those waters, and to the allocation of the Community's redfish quota in the waters covered by the North-East Atlantic Fisheries Commission, together with management measures for those waters.
In order to implement commitments made in the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas, the Council agreed unanimously to the introduction of TACs for bluefin tuna and swordfish.
The Commission presented a paper reviewing the marketing of fisheries products which will be discussed during the UK Presidency next year.