The Mediterranean and Eastern Atlantic Bluefin Tuna (considered a single stock) is a highly regulated species with annual catch limits set by the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) based on scientific advice. ICCAT is an intergovernmental fishery organisation responsible for the conservation of tunas in the Atlantic Ocean and adjacent seas. It has 52 contracting parties including the EU, US, Japan, Norway and Iceland.
Fifteen ICCAT members have quota allocations for Mediterranean and Eastern Atlantic Bluefin Tuna (BFT), including the EU, Norway and Iceland. The Faroe Islands is not a contracting party to ICCAT and is not allocated a quota for BFT by ICCAT. For 2021, ICCAT set the Total Allowable Catch (TAC) of Bluefin Tuna at 36,000 tonnes, of which 19,460 tonnes was allocated to the EU, 300 tonnes to Norway and 180 tonnes to Iceland.
Data published by ICCAT indicates that Norway has landed 248 tonnes of BFT over the period 2018 to 2020 (inclusive). Iceland and the Faroe Islands have not landed any BFT in this same period.
The EU percentage share of the international TAC is set down and there is no likelihood that an international country will concede any share to the EU.
Bluefin Tuna is a highly migratory large pelagic species which spawns in the Mediterranean and then migrates over a wide area of the North East Atlantic to feed. This migration brings some of the fish into the Irish 200 miles zone for part of the year. At the time we see fish in the Irish zone, there are also fish being caught in the international high seas and over a wide area from Spain to Norway. There is no survey from which the abundance in Ireland's 200 miles zone may be determined.
The EU's quota for Bluefin Tuna is allocated each year to Member States on the basis of relative stability as established in the late 1990s. At that time, Ireland did not have a track record of commercial fishing for Bluefin Tuna and, accordingly, did not receive a quota allocation.
The only way to obtain a share of the EU quota now would involve changing relative stability within the EU and would require a majority of Member States to agree under the qualified majority voting system. This would be extremely challenging as it would require Member States with a national quota of BFT to give up a share of their allocation to Ireland.
EU Regulation 1380/2013 (the basic Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) regulation), sets down that the European Commission will report to the European Parliament and the Council on the functioning of the CFP by the end of 2022.
I have made it clear, most recently during the Commissioner's recent visit, that the Commission must undertake during 2022 a thorough review of the CFP. I am committed to doing all possible through the review to secure additional quota where possible for Irish fishers.
It is expected that all stakeholders will have an opportunity to engage actively in the Commission's review over the coming period, including the fishing industry, eNGOs and Member States. I will consider how Ireland will prepare for and participate actively and effectively in the review of the CFP, including the interaction with stakeholders, to prepare Ireland's case and identify priorities.
