The Spanish Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Food, Luis Planas.
Ministerio de Agricultura, Pesca y Alimentación
The Spanish Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Food, Luis Planas, will request, with the support of France and Italy, a reform of the fishing regulation in the Mediterranean at the upcoming EU Agriculture and Fisheries Council.
Planas and the French Minister for Ecological Transition, Biodiversity, Forests, Sea, and Fisheries, Agnès Pannier-Runacher, agree that certain EU policies need to be changed to secure the future of this sector.
Among these changes is the modification of the Multiannual Management Plan for the Western Mediterranean, with the goal of ensuring greater legal certainty and economic predictability for the fishing fleet.
They also call for a review of the scientific advisory procedures for Mediterranean fisheries, which are considered mixed and involve very specific conservation objectives and measures.
As the adjustment period with the United Kingdom ends in 2026, the two politicians have also discussed a plan addressing the joint management of around one hundred shared fish stocks in both EU and UK waters.
The aim is to develop a stable and predictable long-term plan for access to these waters, respecting the rights of the fishing fleets that have historically had access to UK waters.
For this reason, they have agreed to continue with the unity of the eight member states (Belgium, the Netherlands, France, Ireland, Germany, Sweden, Denmark, and Spain) involved.
Just a few days before the end of 2024, the European Union's Ministers of Fisheries reached a unanimous agreement on fishing quotas and fishing days in European waters for 2025.
Fishing opportunities in the Mediterranean Sea were a particularly contentious topic after the European Commission had initially proposed a 79% reduction in fishing days.
