Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2000-03-01-Speech-3-173"
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"en.20000301.11.3-173"2
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"I do not suppose that anybody in this House would object to the principle of protecting juveniles of marine organisms. Indeed, it is often stated that one of the general objectives of the common fisheries policy shall be to protect and conserve living marine aquatic resources. All laudable stuff. There can also be no doubt that bluefin tuna is of enormous environmental and financial significance.
As a king sport fisherman myself, I would love to see the days of the 1930s come back when anglers from the port of Scarborough in Yorkshire caught bluefin tuna weighing up to 830 pounds. I do not know what the metric equivalent is. So I support the findings of ICCAT and I support the principle of intergovernmental cooperation on environmental issues.
My concern though with this debate is that we are fiddling whilst Rome burns. The common fisheries policy is not working. For all of the high-minded talk about conservation, the reality is that the quota system is directly leading to an environmental disaster. In mixed fisheries, you cannot discriminate. The sheer volume of fish that are thrown back dead also means that any improvement in fisheries data is meaningless. From a UK perspective there is also a deep-seated political objection to the CFP. Many people now feel if this is federalism you can keep it.
Let me illustrate this with a topical example. In February, Commission Regulation 394/2000 designed to protect Irish Sea cod stocks was issued. It means that in Fleetwood, 30 inshore boats are tied up until the end of April. The scientists and the fishermen both agree that something has to be done. However, more than a dozen large Belgian beam trawlers have been granted a derogation from this regulation so the vessels that caused the very problem in the first place are carrying on fishing whilst it is a criminal offence for the UK fleet to do so. The CFP does not assist in conservation and is angering the British public to the point where we demand to re-establish control over our own territorial waters."@en1
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