The common fisheries policy (CFP) is the tool developed by the European Union for managing fisheries and aquaculture. This policy was designed to manage a common resource and respect the obligations laid down in the first treaties of what was then the European Community. Because of its nature as a mobile natural resource, fish are considered to be a shared resource. Furthermore, the treaties that set up the Community recognised the need for shared management in this area, i.e. common rules adopted on a European Union level and implemented in all Member States.

The EPP-ED Group believes that the CFP’s fundamental objective must be to ensure the viability of this economic sector. It must contribute to the food supply and ensure employment and economic and social cohesion in the EU’s outlying and coastal regions. In addition, the CFP must preserve marine ecosystems and, especially, conserve stocks for future generations."

PRESS RELEASES

23/09/2008	EPP-ED Group urges EU governments to act together against sea piracy. Carmen Fraga MEP
18/09/2008	Duarte Freitas pede regulamentação especial para a gestão do sector das Pescas nas RUP's/ Management of fishery resources in the outermost regions. Duarte Freitas MEP
03/09/2008	El PP reclama a Bruselas que aclare por qué autoriza la entrada en la UE de productos pesqueros prohibidos en Estados Unidos. Daniel Varela MEP
02/09/2008	New Costal Zone Policy can yield €660m gain for Fisheries and Aquaculture in Europe. Ioannis Gklavakis MEP
15/07/2008	Duarte Freitas considera medidas de emergência da UE para a Pesca insuficientes e pede pressão por parte do Governo / EU emergency measures for fisheries. Duarte Freitas MEP

SESSION NEWS

New fisheries deal with Mauritania On Thursday 10 July, the plenary adopted the new fisheries agreement with Mauritania to 2012, which is the most important one that the EU has with a third country. In her report on this new protocol, EPP-ED Fisheries committee spokeswoman Carmen Fraga MEP (Spain), supported a green light to the new protocol, even if it will be more expensive for the EU to fish in Mauritanian waters. This is because under the former agreement the fishing opportunities are reduced more than the financial compensation agreed for the new period.

Rapporteur Fraga hopes that the next four years will offer a better framework for dialogue that will make it possible to resolve these irregularities so that future protocols will not suffer from the same shortcomings.

COMMITTEE NEWS

Fisheries and Aquaculture Long-term planning involving representatives of all sectors in coastal zones, effective coordination of the competent authorities in managing these zones and regional cooperation including third countries, are some of the key elements of a report by Ioannis Gklavakis MEP. The report on Fisheries and Aquaculture in the context of integrated coastal zone management in Europe was adopted unanimously on Thursday 26 June in the Committee on Fisheries.

POLICY

As the Community was created to ensure peace and promote prosperity in Europe, among the policies adopted to achieve these goals was the encouragement of economic development in regions suffering from a lack of jobs and opportunities. The EPP-ED Group firmly believes that fisheries and aquaculture have an important role to play in implementing this policy of economic and social cohesion. The two sectors employ 526,034 people, both men and women, and their combined production value (fisheries, aquaculture, processing and marketing) amounted to 7 million tonnes in 2003 (the EU has the second biggest fisheries sector in the world, after China)...

EPP-ED GROUP HEARING

Public Hearing on Shark Action Plan Brussels, 6 March 2008 Programme      Conclusions

DELEGATION VISITS

  A delegation of the European Parliament´s Committee on Fisheries visits Norway
  The visit took place on 28-31 May 2008
  Report of the visit

	The MEPs from the Committee on Fisheries have visited Ireland. The visit took place on 17-20 March 2008 Report of the visit      Programme Irish South and West Fishermen’s Organisation
	The MEPs from the Committee on Fisheries have visited Sardinia on invitation of Iles Braghetto MEP (EPP-ED, Italy). The visit took place on 3-6 February 2008. Among the MEPs of the delegation was also Ioannis Gklavakis MEP (EPP-ED, Greece). Summary of the visit        Programme