Today the European Commission has proposed a multi-annual plan for demersal fish stocks in the North Sea. The proposal covers demersal fish stocks, i.e. fish that live and feed near the bottom of the sea, and aims to ensure that stocks are fished at sustainable levels. It will also bring decision-making closer to fishermen.

On 29 June 2016 the Council of Fisheries Ministers and the European Parliament reached a political agreement to amend the rules currently in force for cod stocks (a long-term plan, also known as the cod recovery plan, which has been in force since 2008).

The bluefin tuna fishing season in the Western and Central Mediterranean Sea and in the Adriatic Sea was open from 26 May to 24 June for purse seiners. Thanks to the implementation of an international recovery plan and to the efforts made by fishermen, catch limits for this stock could again be increased this year (the EU quota is just over 11200t in 2016, compared to 7938 t two years ago).

The European Commission’s long-standing commitment towards the conservation of Bluefin tuna comes to the fore again for the main fishing season of 2016.