This week in Strasbourg: Morocco agreement, Black Sea Fisheries, South Pacific RFMO, CFP report allocation, lecture by Daniel Pauly.

Black Sea & South Pacific
The European Parliament plenary voted on two fisheries documents this week, and both were approved. The first was a recommendation on the Convention on the Conservation and Management of High Seas Fishery Resources in the South Pacific Ocean, by rapporteur Carmen Fraga Estévez. The second was a report on on current and future management of Black Sea fisheries, by rapporteur Iliana Malinova Iotova. Read more: European Parliament moves to protect fish stocks in Black Sea (fis.com).

Morocco agreement challenged
On Tuesday, a cross-party group of MEPs called for the controversial EU-Morocco fisheries agreement to be referred to the European Court of Justice (ECJ) to assess its compatibility with the EU treaties and international law. The initiative has been taken by Catalan Green MEP Raül Romeva, together with Liberal MEP Andrew Duff, and has been signed by 77 MEPs in total and means the European Parliament will vote on a resolution to seek a legal opinion. Read more: MEPs challenge Morocco fishing deal (EuropeanVoice) / EU-Morocco fisheries agreement – an affront to international law (Raül Romeva)

CFP report allocation
The coordinators in the EP fisheries committee have also met informally in Strasbourg, trying to solve the issue of allocating the reports in the CFP reform package to the political groups. Different solutions have been discussed, and MEPs are expected to reach an agreement on Monday.

Dr Daniel Pauly
In Strasbourg, there was also a conference with Dr Daniel Pauly, attended by several MEPs from the fisheries committee. A video from the conference is expected to be published next week.

Axel Naver

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