Conservation and control measures applicable in the area covered by the Convention on future multilateral cooperation in the North-East Atlantic fisheries

Key points

The EESC:

• believes that the conservation and enforcement measures adopted by the North-East Atlantic Fisheries Commission (NEAFC) should be transposed into EU law, with a view to achieving their uniform and effective implementation within the EU;
• believes however that the transposition procedure is still not based on an efficient mechanism, since these measures are amended every year and the EU's bureaucratic procedures are very slow, leading to a continuous time-lag between the rules adopted by NEAFC and EU legislation;
• stresses the important role of regional fisheries management organisations (RFMOs) in adopting conservation, management and control measures for fish stocks in the high seas and calls on the European Commission and the Member States, together with the other contracting parties, to empower those organisations as much as possible by equipping them with the economic, human and scientific resources needed to achieve their objectives properly.