Resolution on the evaluation of the Common Fisheries Policy and follow-up

The European Parliament adopted by 562 votes to 1, with 33 abstentions, a resolution on the evaluation of the Common Fisheries Policy and follow-up.

The text adopted in plenary was tabled by the EPP, S&D, ECR and Renew groups.

The economic, social, environmental and geopolitical context in which the common fisheries policy (CFP) operates has dramatically changed since the current framework was established in 2013, including as a result of Brexit, the COVID-19 pandemic, Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and the resulting energy price volatility, and increasing environmental pressures from climate change. These developments have affected the profitability and social sustainability of parts of the fisheries and aquaculture sectors, in particular the small-scale operators, and the resilience of coastal and island communities.

Ad hoc measures adopted by the EU and the Member States to support the fisheries and aquaculture sectors and alleviate some of the challenges that have emerged since the adoption of the current CFP framework have been welcomed and have helped the sectors in difficult times. During the same period, the underlying legislative framework has remained largely unchanged. The Commission’s evaluation of the CFP points to some progress, particularly in relation to environmental sustainability, while it recognises the failure to meet the CFP’s objectives and the progress needed in sustainability, stock recovery and the implementation of the ecosystem-based approach and it identifies persistent challenges related to the implementation, enforcement, profitability, competitiveness, socioeconomic resilience, food security and the development of EU aquaculture.

Against this background, Parliament welcomed the Commission’s evaluation of the CFP but regretted that it was not accompanied by a clear commitment to, or a timetable or measures for, follow-up actions, including concrete reforms to address the shortcomings identified in the evaluation. It believes that the follow-up must address the operational problems faced by fishers and aquaculture producers while preserving the core objectives of the CFP.

Noting that context in which the CFP is implemented has fundamentally changed since 2013 and, in the light of the evaluation, Members considered that this requires an ambitious, targeted and timely revision. They called for a more coherent, proportionate, science-based and results-oriented management approach for EU fisheries.

Modernisation

Members underlined the need to facilitate and support the modernisation and renewal of the EU’s fishing fleet to improve safety and working conditions on board, increase energy efficiency and achieve decarbonisation. They called on the Commission, in cooperation with the Member States, to swiftly address this need and to revise the fishing-capacity framework. Such a revision is essential to enable the modernisation, renewal and decarbonisation of the EU’s fishing fleet while maintaining competitiveness and providing attractive and safe employment for future generations of fishers.

Parliament called for the application of maximum sustainable yield provisions to take due account of the specific characteristics of different fisheries, in particular mixed fisheries. The Commission, given the need for further regionalisation and in the context of the follow-up to the CFP evaluation, is called on to assess the multiannual plans (MAPs) and their implementation and to propose targeted improvements aimed at greater clarity, flexibility, coherence and practical effectiveness, while ensuring environmental, economic and social sustainability.

Competition

The resolution called for a fair and competitive EU market for fisheries and aquaculture products. It called for greater transparency and traceability throughout the supply chain, clearer consumer information and improved labelling for all types of seafood products, including the mandatory indication of origin. Members called for a level playing field between EU and non-EU producers and between EU and imported products. They considered, therefore, that a targeted revision of the Common Market Organisation Regulation is necessary to strengthen these objectives and ensure that imported products are subject to standards and requirements that are equivalent to those applicable to EU products.

Parliament stressed the importance of robust implementation and enforcement of the EU’s zero-tolerance approach to IUU fishing.

Funding

The resolution called for the continued simplification of access to EU funding for fisheries and aquaculture, in particular under the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund, which should remain a specific and adequately funded instrument for the CFP, including by reducing administrative requirements and procedures, improving access for small operators and providing targeted financial, technical and administrative support, while maintaining safeguards and supporting investments contributing to safety, improved working conditions, energy efficiency, decarbonisation, selectivity and sustainable development.

Simplification

Parliament welcomed the announcement by the Commission of a fisheries and aquaculture simplification package and called for it to be presented before the end of 2026. It considered that the package should streamline existing EU legislation, reduce administrative burdens, improve legal clarity and certainty, strengthen competitiveness and resilience and facilitate the practical implementation of EU rules, while maintaining the objectives of sustainable fisheries management.

The resolution called on the Commission to review and simplify the implementation of the Fisheries Control Regulation, including reporting obligations, digital traceability requirements, catch registration procedures, weighing rules and electronic monitoring systems, ensuring that control measures remain proportionate, operationally feasible and adapted to the realities of fishing activities.

The Commission is called on to:

- follow up on the evaluation with a clear roadmap setting out the planned necessary measures and legal acts, the procedural timeline and the expected reduction in administrative burdens, while ensuring consistency with the objectives of the CFP;

- present targeted legislative proposals in sufficient time to allow Parliament and the Council to adopt meaningful improvements within the current parliamentary term.

Lastly, should the Commission fail to present concrete legislative proposals by the end of 2026, Parliament stressed that it reserves the right to launch a legislative own-initiative report requesting the Commission to submit appropriate legislative proposals in relation to the above-mentioned concerns.

Text adopted by Parliament, single reading