The Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) 

The Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) sets rules for managing European fishing fleets and for conserving fish stocks. It aims to ensure that fishing and aquaculture are environmentally, economically and socially sustainable and that they provide a source of healthy food for EU citizens. 

The CFP was first introduced in the 1970s and went through successive updates, the most recent of which took effect on 1 January 2014.

The CFP regulation, which is the overarching EU legislation on fisheries, refers only once to recreational fisheries: “Recreational fisheries can have a significant impact on fish resources and Member States should, therefore, ensure that they are conducted in a manner that is compatible with the objectives of the CFP.” 

However, in its answer to a parliamentary question tabled by MEP Richard Corbett (UK, S&D) in November 2015, the Commission acknowledges that the key Article 17 of the CFP regulation – which concerns the criteria for the allocation of fishing opportunities by Member States - does not exclude the extension of its scope to include recreational fishing.

Other EU fisheries legislations adopted in the recent years tend to progressively include recreational fisheries. 
 
Read more about recreational fisheries and the EU legislation here.

EAA position: Marine recreational fisheries must be included in the CFP

The European Anglers Alliance has organised several events and published a position paper to support its call for recreational fisheries to be fully recognised in the CFP as a distinct sector.

The recreational sector and its value chain already represent a large proportion of the employment along rural and coastal regions of Europe. It is time to take the brakes off the MRF sector and to serve coastal economies with sustainable, well-paid jobs. It is time to offer a level playing field to the millions of Europeans who want to enjoy the public resource that are our fish. It is time to really acknowledge marine recreational fisheries as a part of the fisheries sector and to fully consider it as an integral part of coastal fisheries management and the Common Fisheries Policy.



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