To mark World Oceans Day, GLOBE, a network of international parliamentarians and legislators, held a forum in London to discuss the CFP reform, the product of which was a declaration containing 18 recommendations to ensure a radical and ambitious reform.
Of these, the most remarkable was the statement that GLOBE “supports proven sustainable fishing methods by allocating access rights on the basis of environmental sustainability, giving priority to vessels that utilise selective gear and low-impact methods of fishing”. This has been a key policy goal of the OCEAN2012 coalition.
The declaration was an impressive statement of intent, and contained further positive ambitions, such as: catch limits to be based on achieving MSY and requiring scientific assessments for all species, and prioritising environmental sustainability through the development of long-term management plans– an end to capacity-enhancing and environmentally destructive subsidies.
However, it remains to be seen whether these ambitions will be reiterated by national parliaments, and reflected by Member States in the European Council, which has a reputation for watering down rather than strengthening the Commission’s CFP proposals.