Marathon EU fisheries negotiations begin with discard ban on pelagics to be imposed
SEAFOODNEWS.COM [Press and Journal] By Keith Findlay - December 16, 2014 -
The circus is back in town and another December Fisheries Council meeting ushers in a couple of sleepless nights.
But this time we have a new ringmaster as former European Union Fisheries Commissioner Maria Damanaki has, thankfully, moved on.
Proceedings this year are conducted by Karmenu Vella, a former Maltese tourism minister. Only time will tell if he is an improvement but it would be difficult for him to be worse than his predecessor.
The EU and Norway have already struck an agreement on mackerel, removing much of the animosity which has characterised end-of-year negotiations in the past.
Quotas for jointly managed North Sea stocks have also been agreed, with the good news of increased cod and haddock quotas tempered by reductions for both saithe and whiting.
Next year sees the introduction of the landings obligation (discard ban) for pelagic species (mainly mackerel and herring).
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