In what will now become tradition, the European Union and the United Kingdom will shortly start their consultations with the aim of agreeing Total Allowable Catches (TACs) for shared stocks. According to the Trade & Cooperation Agreement, the EU and the UK will have to agree the 2022 fishing opportunities by 10 December 2021.
Now that the necessary scientific advice for 2022 has been published by the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES), the EU and the UK will be able to start their consultations. The Commission is working with the Member States on its mandate for the negotiations. The consultations will cover a wide range of fish species, including the seabass, an iconic species for anglers in Europe.
The
ICES catch recommendation for seabass advised that total removals for both commercial and recreational catches should be no more than 2,216 tonnes. Recommended recreational catches should be no more than 583 tonnes.
This represents an increase of 200 tonnes compared to 2021. Translating this into bag limits and open season, this should allow for a
higher bag limit of 3 specimen per day and per angler (instead of 2),
over a longer open season, from March to December (instead of April to December).
The European Anglers Alliance is closely following the negotiations to make sure that the anglers’ interests are heard in Brussels. The EAA is in contact with the relevant decision- and policy-makers to
recall the economic value of marine recreational fisheries, especially of seabass angling, and to ensure a fair outcome for recreational fisheries.