Press Release: Commission sets quota reductions for UK and Ireland following overfishing of mackerel and herring

The European Commission has adopted a Regulation which provides for the reduction of certain fishing quotas for the UK and Ireland over the period 2007 to 2012. This is in response to overfishing of herring and mackerel quotas during the period 2001 to 2005. The decision follows on from in-depth investigations conducted by the UK authorities in 2005 and 2006. The reductions made by the Commission will be spread over a number of years, in order to avoid undue negative social and economic impacts on the fleets and processing industry affected by the reductions. For this reason also, the maximum annual reduction under this regulation will be 15% of the annual quota to be set by the Council in future TACs and quotas regulations. The Regulation will come into effect seven days after its publication in the Official Journal.