The Sea Fisheries (Amendment etc.) (No. 2) Regulations 2021

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations make amendments to retained EU law in the field of sea fisheries.

The United Kingdom’s illegal, unreported and unregulated (“IUU”) fishing vessel list is contained in Commission Regulation (EU) No 468/2010. Regulation 2 introduces the Schedule to these Regulations which amends the part of the list which specifies vessels contained in the IUU fishing vessels lists of regional fisheries management organisations (“RFMOs”). The amendments add vessels to the UK list to ensure that the UK maintains a list which includes all relevant vessels identified by RFMOs and meets its obligations to the RFMOs of which it is a member.

The ‘landing obligation’ (the requirement to land catches of certain fish stocks and count them against quota) is contained in Regulation (EU) No 1380/2013 and there are four additional retained EU law Regulations which specify exemptions from the landing obligation known as the ‘discard plans’. The discard plans are set out in Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 1393/2014(1), Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 1395/2014(2), Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/2238(3) and Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/2239(4). Regulations 3, 4, 8 and 9 amend the discard plans to extend their application beyond the end of 2021, when they were due to expire, and to make amendments to individual exemptions based on scientific advice.

Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2019/909(5) and Commission Delegated Decision (EU) 2019/910(6) together set out the multiannual programme for the collection and management of fisheries data. Regulations 5 and 6 amend those Decisions to extend their application beyond the end of 2021 when they were due to expire.

Regulation 7 makes a minor amendment to Regulation (EU) 2019/1241(7) to increase the mesh size requirement for vessels fishing for bass in ICES area 7d. The relevant provision previously specified a minimum mesh size requirement of 90mm for certain fishing activities in area 7d but these Regulations increase that minimum mesh size to 100mm for directed fishing for bass using static nets.

Regulation 10 amends Council Regulation (EU) 2020/123(8) to update the provisions which regulate sea bass fishing. The amendments extend the application of the fishing measures beyond the end of 2021 when they were due to expire. They also increase overall the discard limits for vessels using trawls and seines, and revoke provisions relating to sandeel fishing which have now expired.

An impact assessment has not been produced for this instrument as no, or no significant, impact on the private, voluntary or public sector is foreseen.

(1)

EUR 2014/1393, as amended by paragraph 4 of Schedule 11 to the Fisheries Act 2020.

(2)

EUR 2014/1395, as amended by S.I. 2019/848 and paragraph 5 of Schedule 11 to the Fisheries Act 2020.

(3)

EUR 2019/2238, as amended by paragraph 12 of Schedule 11 to the Fisheries Act 2020 and S.I. 2020/1542.

(4)

EUR 2019/2239, as amended by paragraph 13 of Schedule 11 to the Fisheries Act 2020 and S.I. 2020/1542 and 2021/698.

(5)

EUDN 2019/909, amended by S.I. 2020/1542.

(6)

EUDN 2019/910, amended by S.I. 2020/1542.

(7)

EUR 2019/1241, as amended by S.I. 2019/1312 and by paragraph 11 of Schedule 11 to the Fisheries Act 2020.

(8)

EUR 2020/123, as amended by paragraph 14 of Schedule 11 to the Fisheries Act 2020 and S.I. 2020/1542 and 2021/698.