§ Lord Moranasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether fishing for sandeels continues on the Wee Bankie, Man Bank, Scalp Bank and Smith Bank; whether it is correct that there was a near record catch of sandeels from the North Sea in 1997; and whether they think that fishing of sandeels on this scale is sustainable. [HL1314]
§ The Parliamentary Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (Lord Donoughue)Fishing for sandeels continues in the Wee Bankie and neighbouring fisheries. Final data for the 1997 North Sea sandeel fishery are not yet available, but in October 1997 the Advisory Committee on Fishery Management of the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) advised that the stock could sustain current fishing mortality and appeared to be within safe biological limits.
§ Lord Moranasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they agree that the precautionary principle should be applied in areas fished or quantities taken in the North Sea sandeel fishery; and, if so, what steps they are taking to promote that approach; and [HL1315]
What progress has been made since the Intermediate Ministerial Meeting on the Integration of Fisheries and the Environment at Bergen in March 1997 on restricting sandeel fishing in areas that are important to other fish and to birds. [HL1316]
§ Lord DonoughueThe Government support precautionary management for the North Sea sandeel fishery. They therefore supported the introduction of a 123WA total allowable catch (TAC) with effect from 1 January 1998, but pressed for the level of the TAC to be lower.
The Government are also funding a range of research projects on sandeels in order to develop new assessment and management approaches. This research includes participation in a collaborative project (ELIFONTS), ending next year, to examine the impact of industrial fishing on sandeel abundance and the effects of variations in that abundance on predators in the Wee Bankie and neighbouring fisheries. The contractors have undertaken to give early warning of any interim results which show that the fishery is having adverse effects on the various species.
The statement of conclusions of the Intermediate Ministerial Meeting on the Integration of Fisheries and the Environment in Bergen in 1997 included an invitation to the competent authorities to consider restrictions on fishing in any areas where it is judged the ecosystem requires protection. The results of the ELIFONTS project will assist in responding to this point. More broadly, the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) has been examining the ecosystem effects of fishing including the identification of areas holding sandeels that need protection in order to safeguard important concentrations of birds and other wildlife. The ICES report is expected in May 1998.