London 24th June 2008

European Union fisheries ministers have reached unanimous political agreement on the European Commission's proposal for a Council Regulation to prevent, deter and eliminate illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) or “Pirate” fishing.

The European Council has agreed a substantive and extremely important agreement to further the effective conservation of fish stocks by combating Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated “Pirate” fishing. EJF applauds this decision and urges the Commission and all Member States to work quickly towards ensuring its effective and comprehensive implementation.

As the largest consumer market for seafood in the world, the European Union has a key role to play in international fisheries, including the elimination of illegal fishing activities. EJF investigations have shown that pirate fishing operators specifically target developing countries that are unable to afford the costs of patrolling their waters. These pirate operators have been exploiting a number of loopholes to effectively ‘launder’ their stolen fish into the European market, loopholes that with the new regulation should be effectively closed.

Significantly the Council reached agreement on the three most contentious issues contained within the regulation:

• The Regulation will apply to European vessels as well as ships flying foreign flags, and cover all waters;

• A certification system will ensure that IUU fish, including processed fish products, do not enter the EU market;

• Sanctions will be harmonised across the EU, proportionate to the value of the landed catch and significantly higher for repeated offenders.

EJF Director Steve Trent said: "We applaud the European Council on its unanimous agreement on the Commission’s proposed IUU regulation. Pirate Fishing is one of the main global threats to fish stocks, and is having enormous impacts on the livelihoods and basic food security of poor fishing communities in many developing countries.
It is estimated that Africa alone has been losing over US$1 billion every year to illegal fishing operators, with much of this stolen fish ending up on European plates. The Council has taken an important step to help redress the balance in favour of sustainable fisheries not just in European waters, but around the world”.

Image caption: EJF investigations have shown that pirate fishing operators target poor developing countries to catch fish that end up on European plates. The European Council’s unanimous agreement on the Commission’s Proposal to prevent, deter and eliminate IUU fishing is a vital step towards sustainable and legal fisheries in Europe and internationally.