Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2006-03-14-Speech-2-403"
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"en.20060314.31.2-403"2
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". – Mr President, I will start my presentation on promoting more environmentally friendly fishing methods by reminding Parliament that in recent times fishermen collectively have been seriously under attack.
Because of illegal actions by the few, there is a growing public perception that collectively fishermen are all potential criminals. I say to colleagues and especially to you, Commissioner, that this has to stop. Are there dishonest people in the fisheries sector? Of course there are, just like in every other sector – economic or otherwise – known to man. If someone is guilty of criminal activity then let the full force of the appropriate law apply. On the other hand, we must put a stop to the insidious branding of the entire fisheries profession with the same brush of dishonesty. We must never forget that the great majority of men and women involved in the sector are honest, dedicated and extremely hard-working people.
Furthermore, no meaningful change can be achieved without the active involvement and participation of those honest fishermen and women. In recent years the key challenge to maintaining sustainable fisheries has, to a large extent, developed into an overly simplistic and polarising debate on whether or not we should have more or less fishing. In reality the challenge of rebuilding stocks and maintaining sustainability is also about developing new and better ways of fishing through the utilisation and development of new technology.
The objective of maintaining sustainability must, most centrally, embrace the question of how we fish in the future so that we harvest our marine resources in the most environmentally favourable way. The introduction of fishing practices that reduce adverse impacts on our ecosystems is a priority. To achieve that we must first understand the effects of fishing practices on the marine environment and promote fishing activities that are environmentally sustainable. I am particularly pleased that the last Irish Presidency proposed the initiative of a major EU programme to make fishing activity more environmentally friendly in order to help to build European fish stocks.
This is an urgent matter. The urgency is clearly illustrated by one extraordinary statistic: 20 million tonnes of fish are being discarded worldwide every year, equivalent to about one quarter of total world catches. In the words of the then Irish Presidency, over-fishing is part of the overall problem; but taking that amount of fish out of the seas and then throwing it overboard is shockingly wasteful and has to be substantially reduced in the short term. I am sure that you will agree with me that we are going nowhere unless that happens, and that we must do something positive about it.
It is gratifying that we in the European Union are prepared to take the lead to tackle that worldwide problem and deal with such a wasteful side-effect of the fishing industry. The proposed environmental programme includes a review of all existing technical conservation measures within the next two years, to reduce ecosystem and environmental damage. It includes the proposal to fast-track the development of more selective fishing gear. It proposes the simplification of our current rules with a view to facilitating those changes.
I started my presentation in defence of fishermen. I conclude my presentation by underlining that it is our fishermen and women who will have a central role in deciding the future of the European fishing industry. Fishermen and women will have their say in this process through their regional advisory councils, which will have an extremely important role to play. There is no doubt in my mind that fishermen will fully subscribe to this new environmentally friendly approach. They will do so because it will contribute to sustainable fisheries. They will do so because it will contribute to improving fish stocks. They will do so because it will ensure that fish stocks are properly preserved for future generations.
Commissioner, if you want this programme to work then you must ensure that there are proposals for financial and other incentives, including additional quota entitlements to encourage fishermen to move towards more selective and more environmentally friendly fishing gear.
I hope that you will agree with me, Commissioner, that in the current context that will be a small price to pay."@en1
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