Considerations on COM(2023)276 - Amending regulations 2022/109, 2023/194 on fishing opportunities for certain fish stocks both in EU and non-EU waters, as well as the 2023-24 quota for deep-sea fish stocks - Main contents
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| dossier | COM(2023)276 - Amending regulations 2022/109, 2023/194 on fishing opportunities for certain fish stocks both in EU and non-EU waters, as ... |
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| document | COM(2023)276 |
| date | June 29, 2023 |
(2) Regulation (EU) 2023/194 sets at zero the TAC for anchovy (Engraulis encrasicolus) in International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) subareas 9 and 10 and Union waters of Committee for Eastern Central Atlantic Fisheries (CECAF) division 34.1.1 for the period from 1 July 2023 to 30 June 2024, pending the publication by ICES of its scientific advice for that stock for that period. In order to allow fishing to continue until the definitive TAC for that stock is set on the basis of that scientific advice, a provisional TAC at the level of 4 564 tonnes for the period from 1 July to 30 September 2023 should be established. That level corresponds to the catches of that stock in the third quarter of 2022.
(3) Regulation (EU) 2023/194 sets a TAC for Northern prawn (Pandalus borealis) in Union and Norwegian waters of ICES division 3a for the period from 1 January to 30 June 2023. The TAC for that stock for the period from 1 July 2023 to 30 June 2024 should be set following the publication by ICES of its scientific advice for that stock for that period. That TAC should be set in line with the formal outcome of the subsequent bilateral consultations between the Union and Norway on the level of that TAC for that period.
(4) Regulation (EU) 2023/194 provisionally sets at zero the TACs for sprat (Sprattus sprattus) for the period 1 July 2023 to 30 June 2024 respectively in Union and UK waters of ICES subarea 4 and division 2a and in Union and Norwegian waters of ICES division 3a, pending the publication by ICES of its scientific advice for sprat in ICES subarea 4 and division 3a for that period. The definitive TACs for that stock for the period 1 July 2023 to 30 June 2024 should be set following the publication of that scientific advice. Those TACs should be set in line with the formal outcome of the subsequent trilateral consultations between the Union, the United Kingdom and Norway on: (i) the overall fishing opportunities for that stock for that period; and (ii) the level of the TACs for sprat respectively in ICES subarea 4 and division 2a and in ICES division 3a for that period.
(5) Regulation (EU) 2023/194 provisionally sets at zero the TAC for sprat in Union and United Kingdom waters of ICES divisions 7d and 7e for the period from 1 July 2023 to 30 June 2024, pending publication by ICES of its scientific advice for that stock for that period. The definitive TAC for that stock for that period should be set following the publication of that scientific advice. That TAC should be set in line with the formal outcome of the subsequent bilateral consultations between the Union and the United Kingdom on the level of the TAC for that stock for that period pursuant to Article 498(2), (4) and (6) of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement between the European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community, of the one part, and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, of the other part0.
(6) Articles 15 and 17 of Regulation (EU) 2022/20560 of the European Parliament and of the Council prohibit to retain on board, tranship, store on a fishing vessel or land any oceanic whitetip shark (Carcharhinus longimanus) and any silky shark (Carcharhinus falciformis) whole or in part in the area covered by the Convention on the Conservation and Management of Highly Migratory Fish Stocks in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean (WCPFC). In order to avoid overlapping provisions on the same subject matter, it is appropriate to delete Article 45 of Regulation (EU) 2023/194.
(7) Under several International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) recommendations, the Union may, upon request, carry over a percentage of its unused quota of stocks in the ICCAT Convention Area from the penultimate or the preceding year to a given year, according to rules for each ICCAT stock as laid down by ICCAT. Council Regulation (EU) 2022/1090 and Regulation (EU) 2023/194 set Union quotas for ICCAT stocks respectively for 2022 and 2023 in line with the outcome of the ICCAT annual meetings in the preceding year, which takes into account the carry-overs of unused Union quotas, where applicable. The withholding of Member States quotas to be transferred to the following year in accordance with Article 4 of Council Regulation (EC) No 847/960 should therefore not be permitted.
(8) Regulations (EU) 2023/194 and (EU) 2022/109 should therefore be amended accordingly.
(9) In order to allow fishing to continue on 1 July 2023, this Regulation should enter into force without delay.
(10) The provisions of this Regulation concerning fishing opportunities should apply from 1 July 2023, except for the fishing opportunities for Northern prawn in ICES division 3a, which should apply from 1 January 2023. The provisions of this Regulation concerning WCPFC and ICCAT and amending provisions of Regulation (EU) 2023/194 should apply from 1 January 2023, in line with the application period of those amended provisions. The provisions of this Regulation concerning ICCAT and amending provisions of Regulation (EU) 2022/109 should apply from 1 January 2022, in line with the application period of those amended provisions. Such retroactive application does not affect the principles of legal certainty and protection of legitimate expectations, as the fishing opportunities concerned are either increased or quantities withheld upon Member States requests pursuant to Article 4 of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 have not yet been transferred,