Fred Bloot, President of the European Anglers Alliance met with Annie Schreijer-Pierik, Member of the European Parliament from the Netherlands. Ms Schreijer-Pierik is a member of the European parliament's Fisheries committee. She gave her support to the EAA request through many years, that recreational fishing should be included the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) on an equal footing with commercial fisheries and fish farming.
Recreational sea angling is increasingly regulated and impacted by EU legislation, most notably by the CFP. It is high time to oblige the EU to take into account not only the recreational catches, but also the huge socio-economic value and life quality, which angling delivers to the society and citizens. The support of experienced MEPs like Ms Schreijer-Pierik is important. The CFP will be evaluated in 2020. This was confirmed by the Commissioner-Designate Virjinius Sinkevicius during his hearing in front of the European Parliament early in October this year.
More about the meeting (in Dutch):
here
More about the inclusion of recreational fisheries in the CFP:
here