Wednesday 22 November 2006

Quotas have been set for Orange roughy and blue ling fishing despite calls from scientists that they should be closed to direct fishing. Breaching the credibility of the CFP, this decision comes at the time when the EU has supported the closure of the orange roughy fishery in international waters, last week at the North East Atlantic Fisheries Commission (NEAFC) meeting.

Paul King, Director of Campaigns, said: "The EU seems to have a double standard for deep sea fisheries in its waters and outside, this is not coherent. The precautionary principle should not be applicable wherever convenient but to all deep sea fisheries."

However the situation could have been much worse. For the first time in the EU Fisheries Ministerial meeting a blocking minority of countries formed that was not willing to weaken the original proposal as much as was being suggested. These countries were: UK, Sweden, Germany, Denmark, Netherlands and Estonia.

Paul King added: "The UK government is to be applauded for the stance it has taken in this meeting and its impact on the final decision."

Helen McLachlan, WWF Fisheries Officer, said: "While the outcome is not good news for deepwater stocks the stance of the blocking minority countries is to be congratulated in facing up to those Member States who were keen to see even weaker proposals go through. Perhaps the tide is turning as people acknowledge the parlous state our seas are in and the action that is required to turn them around."

The countries who were advocating a more substantial weakening of the agreement included France, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Ireland and Poland.

"Deep sea species are very vulnerable to fishing pressure because of their slow growth rate and slow reproductive capacity," Helen McLachlan continued. "Ministers have now decided to continue to allow fishing for deep sea species, when scientists have urged closures. This could lead to the commercial extinction for some of the fish, such as orange roughy, over the next two years. Where is the precaution in that?"