Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Council Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002 on the conservation and sustainable exploitation of fisheries resources under the Common Fisheries Policy

Article 17(2) of Council Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002 establishes a derogation for the 12 nautical mile zone of Member States (territorial waters) from the general equal access rule for Union fishing vessels to Union waters and resources set out in Article 17(1) of that Regulation, authorizing Member States to restrict access to certain vessels in that zone. The access restrictions put in place by Member States on the basis of that derogation have reduced fishing pressure in the most biologically sensitive areas and have contributed to economic stability for small scale, coastal activities.

The derogation is in place from 1 January 2003 to 31 December 2012. The continuation of the 12 nautical mile access regime is foreseen in Article 6(2) of the proposal for a new Regulation for the Common Fisheries Policy. In the event that the reform of the CFP is not concluded by the end of 2012, it is necessary to extend the validity of the 12 nautical mile access regime with a time limit until the entry into force of the new Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the Common Fisheries Policy, to ensure that fishing activities can continue without interruption from 1 January 2013.

EUR-Lex: COM(2012)277: Follow the progress of this document through the decision-making procedure http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/HIS/?uri=COM:2012:277:FIN

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