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REPORT (COM(2023)0362 – C90221/2023 – 2023/0206(COD))

On the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council laying down conservation, management and control measures applicable in the area covered by the Convention on future multilateral cooperation in the North-East Atlantic fisheries, amending Regulation (EU) 2019/1241 of the European Parliament and of the Council and Council Regulation (EC) No 1224/2009, and repealing Council Regulation (EEC) No 1899/85 and Regulation (EU) No 1236/2010

A-9-2024-0004

Committee on Fisheries · Rapporteur: Francisco Guerreiro

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Written by a language model from the full text only; every figure comes from the text. The paragraph links open the paragraph a statement rests on — check the text itself before relying on it.

Parliament's amended version of the Commission proposal transposing North-East Atlantic Fisheries Commission (NEAFC) conservation, management and control measures into EU law. It adds conditions on pelagic surveillance, waste and lost gear rules, transhipment reporting, inspection and infringement procedures, and defers camera surveillance to 1 January 2026. The amendments require surveillance cameras and sensors only for landings above 10 tonnes at facilities weighing more than 3 000 tonnes per year, with Member States publishing the list of ports concerned. They also set rules on waste discharge and lost gear, transhipment notifications, vessel authorisation lists, inspection reports and serious infringements, and delete several Commission provisions on catch handling and automatic grading equipment.

Committee position. The Committee on Fisheries proposes to adopt Parliament's first-reading position with amendments to the Commission proposal, adding conditions on pelagic surveillance, waste and lost gear, transhipment reporting, inspection and infringement procedures, and deferring camera surveillance to 1 January 2026.

Key points

  1. Parliament adopts its first-reading position on the proposed regulation transposing NEAFC measures into EU law.
  2. The Commission must refer the matter to Parliament again if it replaces, substantially amends or intends to substantially amend its proposal.
  3. Recital 1 adds that the Union must ensure its fishing outside Union waters follows the same principles and standards as under Union law, promoting a level playing field for Union operators.
  4. Recital 11 adds that agreed pelagic control measures should not apply until all parties cease adopting unilateral fisheries measures and honour their obligations.
  5. Camera and sensor surveillance applies only to landings exceeding 10 tonnes at facilities weighing more than 3 000 tonnes per calendar year; Member States publish the list of ports meeting these thresholds.
  6. Implementation of Article 52 may benefit from support under the European Maritime Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund.
  7. Member States, not masters, must implement temporary closures after encounters with possible vulnerable marine ecosystems until NEAFC notifies re-opening.
  8. Masters must not deliberately abandon or discard fishing gear or discharge any kind of waste into the sea, and must notify lost gear within 24 hours; Member States must retrieve lost fixed gear regularly.
  9. Transhipment reports must include quantities on-loaded and off-loaded, with donor notification at least 24 hours before and receiver declaration no later than 1 hour after transhipment.
  10. Flag Member States must respond without delay to serious infringement notifications and ensure the vessel is inspected within 72 hours by a duly authorised NEAFC inspector.
  11. Member States must systematically take appropriate measures, including administrative action or criminal proceedings, against persons responsible for breaches of the conservation and management measures set out in the regulation.
  12. The Commission's delegated powers are extended to include product codes for the production logbook, while restrictions on pelagic catch handling and automatic grading equipment are deleted.

Who is affected

  • Union fishing vessels and their masters operating in the NEAFC Regulatory Area, who face new reporting, gear and waste rules.
  • Member States, which must publish port lists, operate fisheries monitoring centres, assign inspectors and act on infringements.
  • Landing and processing facilities weighing more than 3 000 tonnes per year of certain species, which must install camera and sensor surveillance.
  • Small-scale coastal and artisanal fishing, excluded from the surveillance obligation for landings of 10 tonnes or less.

Figures and deadlines

  • 10 tonnes — threshold above which camera and sensor surveillance applies to landings.
  • 3 000 tonnes per calendar year — total weight of certain species at a facility triggering surveillance.
  • 1 January 2026 — date from which Article 52 on camera and sensor surveillance applies.
  • 24 hours — deadline for notifying lost gear to the flag Member State.
  • 24 hours — advance notice for donor transhipment notification and port of landing notification.
  • 1 hour — deadline after transhipment for the receiver transhipment declaration report.
  • 72 hours — deadline for inspecting a vessel after notification of a serious infringement.
  • 15 days — advance notice for changes to lists of ports notified to EFCA.

Legal basis: Article 294(2) and Article 43(2) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.