PURPOSE: to introduce a scheme to compensate for the additional costs incurred in the marketing of certain fishery products from the Azores, Madeira, the Canary Islands, and the French departments of Guiana and Réunion from 2007 to 2013.
PROPOSED ACT: Council Regulation.
CONTENT: in accordance with Council Regulation 2328/2003/EC, the Commission is required to report on the implementation of the measures provided for in this regulation, accompanied, if necessary, by proposals for appropriate adjustments needed to achieve the objectives laid down in this Regulation. The report and the accompanying Commission Staff Working Document provide an assessment of the application of the compensation scheme on the basis of data available in the Commission and of an external study on "the structural aspects of the Common Fisheries Policy in the outermost regions". The report concludes that the continuation of the scheme for the period 2007-2013 should be considered in view of the positive impact of the scheme on the fisheries sector in the outermost regions and the persisting need for support.
The current basis for support, Regulation 2328/2003/EC, covering an overall financial envelope of EUR 15 million/year, expires on 31 December 2006.
It is suggested to improve the efficiency of the compensation scheme by introducing the following
amendments to the current scheme:
- determination and adjustments of lists of eligible fishery products and their quantities and of compensation amounts by Member States within a fixed annual amount based on allocations in the current scheme to increase pertinence and flexibility of the scheme;
- introduction of safeguards to avoid unjustified levels of compensation by focusing on compensation of transport costs, limiting compensation to a determined share in transport and other related costs and taking into consideration other types of public intervention for the determination of compensation;
- definition of clearer eligibility conditions for recipients and products in order to guarantee a better achievement of the objectives of the scheme and compliance of assisted products with the Common Fisheries Policy;
- introduction of annual reporting by the Member States and of the requirement to ensure the setting-up of an implementation system that assures the regularity of operations;
- switch of the financial management system from shared management under the Guarantee Section of the European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Funds to direct centralised management under the European Agricultural Guarantee Fund in accordance with Council Regulation 1290/2005/EC on the financing of the common agricultural policy.
For more information concerning the financial implications of this proposal, please refer to the financial statement.