Common fisheries policy (CFP)

The Commission communication concerns the guidelines for the analysis of the balance between fishing capacity and fishing opportunities according to Art 22 of Regulation (EU) No 1380/2013 of the European Parliament and the Council on the Common Fisheries Policy.

The new Common Fisheries Policy confirms the need for measures to manage fishing capacity: Member States are required to put in place measures to adjust the fishing capacity of their fleets to their fishing opportunities over time. The analysis and evaluation of the balance between the fleets and the resources that they exploit is carried out by each Member State, in accordance with the present common guidelines developed by the Commission.

The common guidelines developed by the Commission will also play an important role from 2014 onwards by establishing a direct link between each Member State's fleet report and fleet measures under the new European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF).

The purpose of these guidelines is to provide a common methodology for the assessment of the balance over time between fleet capacity and fishing opportunities at fleet segment level.

These guidelines aim to:

• use standard methods to ensure a level playing field when different fleet segments are being compared;
• follow best possible scientific, economic and technical practices8, and ensure compatibility with standard biological, economic and social assessments;
• use data collected according to the Data Collection Framework to facilitate comparisons and to avoid duplication of work.

The fleet segment assessment should be a synthesis assessment based on the foregoing components. A standard methodology for reaching an overall assessment for each fleet segment is described in this communication.