HC Deb 08 January 2002 vol 377 cc745-6W
Ms Oona King

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what initiatives she plans to protect global fish stocks from the effects of overfishing. [22450]

Mr. Morley

The UK argues that EU decisions on the management and technical conservation of fish stocks should be in accordance with sound science. We have supported recovery plans for stocks where the science indicates this to be necessary and will continue to do so.

More globally, the UK plays a prominent role in various Regional Fisheries Organisations (RFOs), supports efforts to increase RFOs' effectiveness and to create new ones, and supports full implementation of the UN Fisheries Agreement through RFOs.

In relation to EU Fisheries Agreements with third countries, the UK has played a leading role in pressing for improved EU arrangements for negotiating and managing the Agreements and monitoring their effect. One of the aspects in need of improvement is the assessment of stocks and of the effect on them of fishing under the Agreements. We are pressing for there to be a comprehensive debate on the approach to these Agreements within the framework of the forthcoming review of the Common Fisheries Policy.

Ms Oona King

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment was made of the implications for(a) fish stocks and (b) the local fishing economy before the EU reached its recent agreement with the Government of Mauritania on allowing EU registered trawlers to fish off that country's coastline. [22453]

Mr. Morley

Such assessments are the responsibility of the European Commission, who wrote an evaluation report on the previous EU-Mauritania Agreement which ran from 1996 to 2001, as they do on all third country fisheries agreements that come up for renegotiation.

The Government have no independent insight into the workings of the EU-Mauritania Agreement but have repeatedly advanced the view on behalf of the UK that the EU's general approach to negotiating, managing and monitoring such agreements needs substantial improvement. In particular, improvement is needed in the areas of scientific assessment, impact monitoring, evaluation of effect and general coherence with overseas development policy. We shall continue to press for a proper debate on the EU's approach which we hope can be achieved in the context of the forthcoming review of the Common Fisheries Policy.