§ Mr. HoodTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what the outcome was of the Fisheries Council held in Brussels on 24 and 25 April; what the Government's voting record was at the Council; and if he will make a statement. [159573]
§ Mr. MorleyI represented the UK at the Fisheries Council on 25 April together with Ms Rhona Brankin, the Deputy Minister for Rural Affairs in the Scottish Executive.
Commissioner Fischler made a first presentation of the Commission's Green Paper on the 2002 Review of the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) underlining the need for significant revision of the CFP in particular to achieve a better balance between catching capacity and stock availability. The Council gave a general welcome to the Green Paper, with a number of member states endorsing the Commission's concern to increase stakeholder involvement in fisheries management and to strengthen the regional dimension. There will be a full discussion of the Green Paper at the June Council.
Commissioner Fischler reported on the current state of play on the stock recovery plans for cod and hake. General support for recovery plans for close industry involvement in their development was expressed together 351W with concerns about individual aspects of the plans. I made clear the need for effective and workable technical conservation measures in the North Sea to take account of the realities of the UK mixed fisheries.
The Council adopted conclusions on the integration of environmental concerns into the CFP, which will contribute to the forthcoming report to the Gothenburg European Council on environmental integration, as required under the Cardiff Process. Commissioner Fischler presented the Commission report on a bio-diversity action plan for fisheries which will now be considered in detail and the Council adopted conclusions on a move towards multi-annual management strategies for setting Total Allowable Catches within a precautionary framework.
We took note of the failure to conclude a further fisheries agreement between the EU and Morocco and of the Commission's intention to bring forward measures for the necessary re-structuring of the Spanish and Portuguese fleets as a result of the lack of fishing opportunities in Moroccan waters. All member states confirmed that they would be ready to ratify the UN Agreement on straddling and migratory stocks by the end of this year. The Council agreed a common position on the criteria that the EU wants to see applied in the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tuna (ICCAT) in the future allocation of catching opportunities. These take account both of the needs of EU fishermen and of developing countries.