BRUSSELS, Oct 24 (Reuter) - European Commissioner Emma Bonino faces defeat at a Fisheries Council on Thursday over plans to control fishing in Western waters, member state officials said.

The rules are due to take effect on January 1, 1996, when Spanish and Portuguese fishermen gain access to fishing grounds off the west coasts of Britain and Ireland.

"It's the last major piece of the jigsaw," a member state official said.

Last December fisheries ministers agreed to allow 40 Spanish vessels into most of the Irish box, a protected fisheries zone around Ireland.

In June, they agreed the distribution of the Spanish vessels between the northern and southern parts of the box and fixed limits on fishing effort, based on fleet engine capacity and days spent in fishing zones.

The Spanish compromise waters down a Commission proposal for captains to report entry and exit from port and from fishing zones.

The Commission proposal was fiercely opposed by the British and Irish fishing industry which said it was too bureaucratic and added yet another layer of regulation.

"It's a step too far," said one official.

Spain instead suggested a more flexible three-tiered approach:

- National waters: member states would make their own arrangements.

- Trips less than 72 hours: vessels would only have to notify the national authority before leaving port.

- Longer trips: vessels would have to report to the national authority on leaving and returning to port and on entering and leaving fishing zones.

The presidency plan is supported by the main fishing nations concerned -- Britain, Ireland, France, Portugal and Spain -- although Portugal wants the controls, which only cover demersal species and shellfish, to include tuna, a pelagic surface swimming fish.

But a unanimous decision would be needed by the 15 member states in order to overrule the European Commission.

Commission Fisheries Spokesman Filippo di Robilant said the presidency plan was unacceptable because it relaxed controls on short trips up to 72 hours and would put fish stocks at risk.

"It's not too difficult or too costly to make a radio call. Skippers are on the air all the time," he told Reuters.

The Commission is concerned that it will be impossible to control fishing effort, especially by Spanish and French vessels which will be able to register in British ports and land their catches there after short fishing trips.

It says the reporting system is needed to reinforce traditional controls.

"The Spanish plan doesn't mean a 'blank cheque' for 72 hours fishing," Di Robilant said, noting measures such as totalallowable catches (TACs) and quotas.

Due to the lack of time before the scheduled January 1 start-up of the western waters fishing measures, a Commission proposal to set up an electronic data bank to process vessel movements and catches has been postponed.