The fishing sector now has the chance to use the EUR 600 million budget allocated for new builds and fleet modernisation after the European Parliament's Fisheries Committee blocked the proposed reallocation of funds to support decommissioning.
The sector must now wait until 6 December for the Council of Ministers to vote on the Committee's recommendation to overturn Commissioner Franz Fischler's proposal to reallocate funding.

This is the first time that a Community body has openly questioned the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) reform proposed by Brussels. The Committee's decision shows that the Fisheries Commission lacks "a political and budgetary foundation" to go ahead with the reform as it now stands and criticises the proposal to reallocate funding, to finance an extensive scrapping programme, by suspending fleet renewal aid.

Daniel Varela, of the European People's Party, wrote the report that won the Committee's approval with 14 votes in favour, four against and two abstentions.
The report asks for fleet renewal and modernisation funding to be continued together with financial support for exports and joint ventures, as previously agreed for 2000 to 2006, with Financial Instrument for Fisheries Guidance (FIFG) funding.
Daniel Varela told Faro de Vigo that the decision was an important step against Commissioner Fischler's proposal.

"The countries that belong to the "Friends of Fishing" group have voted together, with the support of Great Britain, and I hope that this voting will also be supported by the whole Parliament. These agreements are a breath of fresh air before the Council's decision is announced," he said.

"It would be very serious if the Council does not support the continuity of fleet renewal aids. If the European Parliament approves the reports, Fischler will lack political and budgetary support to move forward with the reform, which proposed using FIFG funds allocated to fleet renewal efforts to finance scrapping programmes."
Andalusian Agriculture and Fisheries Councillor Paulino Plata also expressed his satisfaction. "The result of the vote coincides with our views because it positively and favourably redirects the CFP reform and prevents the negative consequences of a proposal that was incorrectly focused," he told Agoterra.

In the meantime, Galicia's Fisheries Councillor Enrique Lopez Veiga expressed a more moderate view. He said the approval of Varela's report was "a relief." But he also said that they still have to wait for the approval of the whole Parliament, and pointed out that if one of the reports had been "turned down", scrapping would have ended up as the only alternative to fleet restructuring.
He also said the Fisheries Committee does not agree with that initiative either. "We should not give up just because we believe that the European Parliament will not support scrapping," he added.

José Ramón Fuertes of Vigo's Fishing Vessels Owners Cooperative told Faro de Vigo that it is an important achievement "because a vast majority is telling Fischler that he has no legal foundation to put an end to fleet renewal and modernisation aids, and that the structural support plan should continue till 2006. This is the goal of Spain and the other countries that belong to the Friends of Fishing group - France, Ireland, Italy and Greece."

For the time being, everyone concerned is now awaiting ratification of the Committee's recommendation, which is expected in early December.