Considering the many shortcomings of the present CFP, a Danish Professor and EU fisheries expert told a gathering of Nordic ministers that “it’s hard not to be pessimistic” about the next Common Fisheries Policy in 2012.
Revision of the CFP was high on the agenda for the summer meeting of the Nordic ministers responsible for agriculture, forestry, fisheries and food in Isafjordur in northwest Iceland.
Professor Jesper Raakjaer of the University of Aalborg claimed that a distorted funding system and low profitability have encouraged building fleet overcapacity, a major problem.
As a possible way forward, he mentioned regionalisation of the CFP, pointing out that the delegation of responsibility for certain issues from Brussels would also make it easier for the fishing nations of Iceland and Norway to contemplate joining the Union.