The committee adopted the own-initiative report drawn
up by Catherine STIHLER (PES, UK) in response to the Commission's review of
certain access restrictions in the Common Fisheries Policy, namely the Shetland
Box and the Plaice Box in the North Sea. The report welcomed the Commission's decision to maintain the
Shetland Box for a further three years while further evaluations are
undertaken and to retain the Plaice
Box and associated restrictions pending further study. It noted that
the Commission's Expert Working Group formed to assess the effectiveness of
the Shetland and Plaice Boxes had highlighted the socio-economic importance
of the Boxes and had stated that one of the objectives of the Shetland Box
was to provide protection for fisheries-dependent communities in the north of