23 June 2014
The Executive Committee of the National Federation of Fishermen’s Organisations met recently in York to agree NFFO policy across a wide range of issues.
The Executive:
1. Affirmed its commitment
to strong engagement with DEFRA, advisory councils and European institutions to
ensure a pragmatic, rational and proportionate implementation of the EU landings obligation
2. Determined to
strongly resist the blanket ban on drift
nets proposed by the European Commission
3. Received a report
on international negotiations on
mackerel and Atlanto-Scandian herring
4. Noted
developments in the European Parliament
and the relaunch of Brussels based fisheries trade association Europeche
5. Endorsed the
Federation’s efforts to redress the imbalanced and sensationalist coverage of
fishing issues in the media
6. Noted the warm
approval of the NFFO Chairman’s report
by one of the founders of modern fisheries science
7. Agreed to make
representations with regard to the Scottish
moratorium on quota transfers out of Scotland
8.
Received an update on the Federation’s work in the
regional advisory councils
9. Welcomed signs
that the flawed and now discredited policy
of limiting time at sea appeared to be drawing to an end
10. Made preparations
for the Autumn quota negotiations
11. Received a report
on the latest meeting with the Marine
Management Organisation
12. Highlighted
shortcomings in the issue of licence
variations
13. Reviewed the
Federation’s work in the realm of safety
and training
14. Took a position
on revisions to the Seafish Responsible
Fishing Scheme
15. Discussed plans
for a major meeting in the autumn on shellfish
policy
16. Discussed the
Federation’s ongoing engagement with fisheries
scientists
17. Reviewed the
Federation’s work on marine protected
areas
18. Considered the
latest developments in offshore
renewables
19. Prepared the NFFO response to Defra’s consultation on IFCAs
20. Discussed the implications of fish stocks with zero TACs
The next meeting of the NFFO
Executive will be held on 5th August.