According to Community sources, the decision will be formally adopted this Tuesday during the meeting of the EU Council of Fisheries Ministers.

The 7 per cent increase in hake TAC will favour the Galician fleet in particular, as it fishes in those waters.

Initially, Brussels had suggested a cut of 10 per cent in the hake TAC of Gran Sol, but the Spanish delegation argued in the meeting that no scientific report corroborated that proposal.

On the contrary, the Spaniards emphasised that the latest analyses reflect a recovery in the fishing-ground, deeming it justified to elevate the TAC of the resource.
If the request is adopted, Spain’s vessels will be able to capture 15,564 tonnes of hake, that is, 1,000 tonnes more than during the present fiscal year, La Voz de Galicia reports.

Within the framework of the Fisheries ministers meeting, a 20 per cent reduction in the TAC of Gran Sol Norway lobster was also agreed to: a cut of 300 tonnes was fixed, although Brussels had intended it to be 443 tonnes.

As of this measure, next year’s Spanish quota would go up to around 1,182 tonnes, against the current year’s 1,479 tonnes.

According to the same European sources, negotiations would have also fostered other cuts proposed by the European Comission (EC). The TAC of the Canary Islands’ Atlantic horse mackerel would be reduced by 10 per cent, instead of 15 per cent.

The results of the talks of the ministers of the 27 European Member States on the anglerfish and the megrim are still not known.

Source: FIS

Updated by Vietfish Community