on the common fisheries policy and the adjustments to be made

The European Parliament,

-having regard to the report from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament on the Common Fisheries Policy (SEC(91) 2288 - C3-0033/92),

-having regard to the 'Delors II' package (COM(92) 2000 and 2001),

-having regard to its resolution of 10 December 1991 on the common fisheries policy and the adjustments to be madeOJ No. C 13, 20.1.1992, p. 37,

-having regard to the second interim report of the Committee on Agriculture, Fisheries and Rural Development (A3-0175/92),

A.having considered the report drawn up by the Commission in accordance with Regulation No. 170/83,

B.noting that the detailed analysis of the current situation in this sector and the shortcomings of the common fisheries policy set out in this document largely coincides with Parliament's views,

C.awaiting the documents setting out the Commission's policy guidelines with regard to conservation and control,

1.Wishes, above all, to restate the principles and priorities which it believes must be implemented in the light of the biological constraints that will prevail in the coming years:

-smaller quantities must be fished, but more effectively, young fish protected and research developed,

-fishermen must benefit from a genuine social and structural solidarity policy,

-the common fisheries policy must be applied in a manner which suits individual regions, fisheries and ports,

-fishermen must be made more aware of their responsibilities as a result of better training and ensuring that they take part in management (subsidiarity principle),

-surveillance must be enhanced and made more effective,

-fishing must be enabled to become a viable economic activity with future prospects at all levels, including processing,

-the development of aquaculture must take account of the quality of the environment;

2.Notes the Commission's conclusion that the fisheries sector is currently in a state of crisis, the effects of which have been temporarily concealed, in respect of certain species, by a price increase which, to date, has virtually offset the reduction in landings;

3.Commends the Commission's honesty in acknowledging the present shortcomings of the common fisheries policy, including those involving its implementation and transposition into national law in some Member States;

4.Stresses nonetheless that many of these shortcomings have been the subject of repeated questions by its Members and even of parliamentary reports over a number of years, despite which the Community authorities have failed to apply at the appropriate time the corrective measures proposed by Parliament;

5.Is concerned that the requisite reduction in capacity in a number of Member States is well below the target figures set out in the multiannual guidance programmes;

6.Recalls the views expressed in its resolution of 10 December 1991 and confirms their continuing relevance;

7.Calls, in particular, since the Commission recognizes that trends in stocks are the basis for the fixing of the major management tools of the common fisheries policy (TAC, quotas, etc.), for all the conclusions to be drawn from this fact by increasing, in an appropriate and consistent manner, the resources allocated to research so as to ensure that totally reliable data can be compiled in this area;

8.Welcomes the fact that the Commission has incorporated a number of the European Parliament's recommendations in its guidelines for the future (while Parliament reserves the right to pass judgment on any specific proposals which are tabled by the Commission in due course) notably in respect of:

-the absolute necessity for the structural adjustments to be accompanied by the appropriate socio-economic measures;

-the need to take into account, when the structural adjustments are made, the special situation of each 'métier'In the field of fishing, the term 'métier' refers to the combination of a particular fishing technique, target species (or range of species) and fishing zone. The term, which is borrowed from French and used without translation by scientists in the various languages, relates to a reality shared by all the Member States, however their fishing industries are organized and regardless of how highly developed these industries are., as witnessed by preparations for a new generation of Multiannual Guidance Plans for the period 1993-1997, the objective of which would be an average 20 per cent reduction in fleet capacity, with a different approach being taken depending on the regions and the fisheries involved after 1992, a year in which capacity adjustment will have been restricted solely to offsetting productivity increases;

-the implementation of biological, climatological and oceanographic research programmes, with a view to fixing TACs more reliably, extending them over several years and applying them to species living in the same waters, so as to take account of ecological balance (e.g. predators and prey);

-the setting up of other means of controlling fishing activities alongside the system of TACs and quotas, such as licences, notably in Member States where fishermen exceed the prescribed TACs and quotas;

-inclusion of fisheries in the reform of the structural funds and recognition of the specific needs of areas which are heavily dependent on fishing, as provided for in the 'Delors II Package' through the adoption of the new Objective 6, provided that the new Objective 6 is endowed with sufficient funds to enable it to make up lost ground, which implies at least twice as much as the appropriation entered in the 1992 budget for structural measures, and provided that it is used with the aim of preserving a living marine environment in the long term;

-the interdependence of the biological and economic aspects of management of fish resources, and the use of the COM and commercial policy in this context;

9.Regrets that the 'Delors II Package' currently proposes no more than a 50 per cent increase for the period 1993-1997 in the current appropriation for structural measures in the fisheries sector, and calls for the review of the financial perspective and the implementation of the Delors II Package, and notably its Objective 6, to provide an occasion to get a genuine common policy off the ground;

10.Notes that the basic principles of access to resources, i.e. the principles of relative stability and of protection of coastal waters within a twelve-mile limit and 'boxes', notably the Shetland Box, will continue to be applied, as Parliament advocated, the sole aim of the planned adjustments being to increase their effectiveness;

11.Is nevertheless aware that the implications of these principles as far as fishing outside Community waters is concerned must be based on the interpretative criteria to be laid down by the Court of Justice, without prejudice to the possibility of adjusting the distribution criteria in accordance with developments in biological, economic and political factors, so as to ensure that no discrimination occurs in the distribution and to contribute to relative stability as regards exploitation of the fish species concerned;

12.Recalls its support for maintaining non-industrial fishing as set out in its resolution of 20 January 1989 on small-scale fisheriesOJ No. C 47, 20.2.1989, p. 173 and hopes, therefore, that any reform of the common fisheries policy will take account of the traditional nature of this type of fishing in conditions that are satisfactory for the fishermen who make their living from it;

13.Expresses its unreserved support for the principle of controlling access to the profession by making it dependent upon the acquisition, through vocational and continuing training, of technical and managerial skills and the knowledge needed to practise the profession with due respect for fish resources and the environment;

14.Urges the Commission to turn its proclaimed wish to increase the market value of fisheries products into reality by supporting the various measures drawn up by all those involved in dealing with fisheries products, notably by facilitating the provision of information for the various ports on available landings by promoting a data-processing network linking the various fish markets and by supporting the development of fish-processing industries as a source of employment and economic development in peripheral areas;

15.Approves the principle of an investment control policy aimed at preventing vessels from being built or renovated without due regard for the objectives of the new MGPs drawn up on the basis of an appropriate segmentation of fleets based on the availability of resources, and expects the accompanying measures introduced to leave the way open for the necessary progress to be made as regards:

- safety and living conditions on board boats,

- selective fishing, product quality and productivity,

- energy saving,

and to take account of the level of development of the fishing industry in the various Community countries so as to enable people living by the sea to obtain their fair share from the exploitation of the resources of their waters;

16.Believes that the following points raised in "Report 1991" require further investigation and public debate:

-multispecies, multiannual TACs taking account of stock geography, with flexible, semi-automatic adjustment mechanisms

-promotion of quota management by representative fishermen's organizations (on condition that the legal and regulatory instruments for it are strengthened and Community powers in this field defined) and extension by the public authorities of their internal decisions to all producers in the same 'métier' on the basis of rules guaranteeing transparency and subsidiarity

-regulation of fishing by a system of administrative licences, while studying the possibility of applying individual quotas by 2003

-possible imitation of the 'Shetland Box' system in other areas to be considered on a case-by-case basis using objective biological criteria

-incentives for fishermen using more selective gear

-making the various aspects of the COM more consistent and coordination with other aspects of the common fisheries policy

-development of a quality policy

-introduction of a more efficient social policy, particularly in the least-favoured maritime regions, designed to alleviate the impact of the restructuring of the Community fleet;

17.Would like to know, should the Commission move towards a system of administrative licences, which authority would manage them and what their exact substance would be;

18.Urges that the Member States be obliged to do their utmost to ensure that the requisite reductions in capacity are carried out on the basis of the terms of reference set out in the multiannual guidance plans;

19.Calls for Member States, when the new fisheries policy is established, to be given the option, for the sake of monitoring and sustainability, of implementing their fishing quotas through a system of licences, days at sea and other means of reducing catches;

20.Takes the view that any system of regulating access to resources will fail unless fishing activities are monitored effectively and believes that the Commission must redouble its efforts geared to the development and installation in all vessels of research systems controlled by the Member States but allowing the Commission instantaneous access to their data, so that surveillance can be carried out on sound bases enabling, where necessary, deterrent penalties to be imposed;

21.Calls for clearer references to the concept of a regional application of the planned conservation and structural adjustment measures by involving, on an advisory basis, the senior professional, political and scientific officials directly involved, as some Member States already do in various Community regions, given that this concept is a logical extension of the approach via 'métiers' which the Commission claims to apply;

22.Calls upon the Commission to continue its work of defining the concept of 'areas heavily dependent on fishing' in order to take account of all the regional situations which exist within Community territory;

23.Reaffirms its commitment to genuinely effective control at all levels of production and marketing that guarantees that the law is the same for all fishermen, which notably presupposes an increase in Community resources and inspection powers, use of modern cost-effective remote surveillance methods and genuinely deterrent penalties (which may go as far as the withdrawal of a licence), but points out that, in order to be effective, restrictions on fishing must be connected with continuous training courses and incentives for fishermen using more selective gear and involve not only strict controls but also adequate funding for decommissioning to ensure that capacity is brought into line with available resources;

24.Considers that, in order to achieve better economic and social cohesion, regions heavily dependent on fisheries should benefit from specific attention and a concentration of Community resources and instruments;

25.Notes with interest the line of thought taken by the Commission with regard to the phenomenon of reject fish and the multifaceted treatment required to combat the waste constituted by the useless death of fish by linking instruments directly related to conservation mechanisms such as the introduction of specific sections in coastal, estuary and other areas where there are concentrations of young fish, which must be identified and protected - a matter with regard to which Parliament has had occasion to express its concern - to other diversified measures involving both the COM rules and the adaptation of vessels with a view to introducing an integrated policy in this area;

26.Takes the view that rules should be drawn up to govern effluent from operational intensive aquaculture establishments and insists that aid should not be granted to such establishments if they are likely to cause coastal pollution by organic waste and the chemical and genetic pollutants contained in such waste;

27.Reasserts its conviction that fishing agreements must be balanced and mutually profitable, but that they are not ordinary trade agreements and should be seen in the light of other aspects of the Community's foreign interests;

28.Calls on the Commission and the Member States to commit themselves to the implementation of a genuine Community social policy in the fisheries sector, quite distinct from the support measures of the structural policy, which would notably cover social protection schemes (with the possibility of unemployment benefit for all fishermen) and the legal status of fishermen, whether they are wage-earners or employed under other types of contract;

29.Emphasizes the need for the introduction of a realistic policy of research into fisheries resources in the waters of third countries with which the Community has signed fisheries agreements, establishing not only the financial resources but also the human and technical resources, so that fisheries agreements may be negotiated on reliable scientific bases and with a view to conserving resources in those waters;

30.Stresses the abnormality of the procedure provided for in Article 11 of Regulation No. 170/83, which excludes any consultation of Parliament on the adoption of conservation measures, and to its regret feels obliged to state that the Commission's alleged desire to promote democratic participation in the drafting of measures having wide-ranging social, economic and regional policy implications is not given practical expression in the proposals contained in 'Report 1991'; hence the next revision of Regulation No. 170/83 should state the need for active participation by Parliament in this regard;

31.Stresses that the future of the CFP after the expiry of Regulation No. 170/83 is dependent upon the measures undertaken for the decade 1993-2002 and that a programme of structural and legislative objectives for the sector for this time must be drawn up immediately;

32.Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission and the Council.