Council Regulation (EC) No 1224/2009 of 20 November 2009 establishing a Union control system for ensuring compliance with the rules of the common fisheries policy, amending Regulations (EC) No 847/96, (EC) No 2371/2002, (EC) No 811/2004, (EC) No 768/2005, (EC) No 2115/2005, (EC) No 2166/2005, (EC) No 388/2006, (EC) No 509/2007, (EC) No 676/2007, (EC) No 1098/2007, (EC) No 1300/2008, (EC) No 1342/2008 and repealing Regulations (EEC) No 2847/93, (EC) No 1627/94 and (EC) No 1966/2006

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 37 thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,

Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament^f1,

Having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee^f2,

Having regard to the opinion of the Committee of the Regions^f3,

Having regard to the opinion of the European Data Protection Supervisor^f4,

Whereas:

The objective of the common fisheries policy, as set out in Council Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002 of 20 December 2002 on the conservation and sustainable exploitation of fisheries resources under the Common Fisheries Policy^f5, is to ensure exploitation of living aquatic resources that provides sustainable economic, environmental and social conditions.

Given that the success of the common fisheries policy involves implementing an effective system of control, the measures provided for in this Regulation seek to establish a Community system for control, inspection, and enforcement with a global and integrated approach in accordance with the principle of proportionality, so as to ensure compliance with all the rules of the common fisheries policy in order to provide for the sustainable exploitation of living aquatic resources by covering all aspects of this policy.

The experience gained in the application of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2847/93 of 12 October 1993 establishing a control system applicable to the Common Fisheries Policy^f6 has shown that the current control system no longer suffices to ensure compliance with the rules of the common fisheries policy.

Currently control provisions are contained in a wide number of overlapping and complex legal texts. Some parts of the control system are poorly implemented by Member States which results in insufficient and divergent measures in response to infringements of the rules of the common fisheries policy thereby undermining the creation of a level playing field for fishermen across the Community. Accordingly the existing regime and all the obligations therein should be consolidated, rationalised and simplified, in particular through reduction of double regulation and administrative burdens.

In view of the scale of the depletion of marine aquatic resources, it is vital for the Community to adopt the necessary measures to develop a culture of compliance among all operators with the rules of the common fisheries policy, and with the objectives set out by the World Summit on Sustainable Development in 2002 as well as the European Council’s Sustainable Development Strategy. To achieve this aim, the rules for control, inspection, and enforcement of conservation as well as resource management measures, structural measures and measures on the common organisation of the market should be reinforced, harmonised and strengthened.

Given that Council Regulation (EC) No 1005/2008 of 29 September 2008 establishing a Community system to prevent, deter and eliminate illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing^f7, obliges the Member States to take appropriate measures to ensure the effectiveness of the fight against all illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing and associated activities and given that Council Regulation (EC) No 1006/2008 of 29 September 2008 concerning authorisations for fishing activities of Community fishing vessels outside Community waters and the access of third country vessels to Community waters^f8 establishes provisions on authorisations for Community fishing vessels to engage in fishing activities outside Community waters and on authorisations for third country fishing vessels to engage in fishing activities in Community waters, this Regulation should be complementary to these Regulations and ensure that there is no discrimination between Member States’ and third country nationals.

This Regulation should affect neither special provisions contained in international agreements or applicable in the framework of regional fisheries management organisations nor any national control provisions which fall within the scope of this Regulation but go beyond its minimum provisions, provided that such national provisions are in conformity with Community law.

Modern technologies, such as the vessel monitoring system, the vessel detection system and the automatic identification system, should be exploited since they allow effective monitoring, systematic and automated cross-checks in a rapid manner, and facilitate the administrative procedures for both the national authorities and the operators and thus allow timely risk analyses and global assessments of all relevant control information. The control system should therefore allow Member States to combine the use of the various control instruments to ensure the most efficient method of control.

A new, common approach to fisheries control should be introduced that includes comprehensive monitoring of catches, with a view to ensuring a level playing field for the fishing sector that takes into account the differences across the segments of the fleet. To this end common criteria for the implementation of fisheries control and in particular standardised and coordinated inspection procedures at sea, on land and throughout the market chain should be established. As part of the new approach the respective responsibilities of the Member States, the Commission and the Community Fisheries Control Agency should be clarified.

Management of fishery resources at Community level is based in particular on total allowable catches (TACs), quotas, effort regimes and technical measures. Appropriate steps should be taken to ensure that Member States adopt the necessary measures to implement these management measures in an effective manner.

Control activities and methods should be based on risk management using cross-checking procedures in a systematic and comprehensive way by Member States. It is also necessary for Member States to exchange relevant information.

Cooperation and coordination between Member States, the Commission and the Community Fisheries Control Agency should be intensified in order to promote compliance with the rules of the common fisheries policy.

To ensure that fishing activities are only undertaken in line with the rules of the common fisheries policy such activities should be subject to a fishing licence and, when specific conditions apply, to a fishing authorisation. Also rules on the marking and identification of fishing vessels and their gear should apply.

To ensure an effective control, Member States should operate a vessel monitoring system and fishing vessels of 12 metres’ length overall or more should be equipped with a device allowing Member States to automatically locate and identify those vessels. Furthermore fishing vessels should be equipped with an automatic identification system in accordance with Directive 2002/59/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 June 2002 establishing a Community vessel traffic monitoring and information system^f9, and Member States should use the data of such a system for cross-checking purposes.

Cooperation among Community agencies and among authorities of Member States should be strengthened. For this purpose, it should be possible to transmit data from the vessel monitoring system, automatic identification system and the vessel detection system to Community agencies and competent authorities of Member States engaged in surveillance operations for the purpose of maritime safety and security, border control, protection of the marine environment and general law enforcement.

It should be for the Council to decide on the future use of electronic monitoring devices and traceability tools such as genetic analysis and other fisheries control technologies if these technologies lead to an improved compliance with rules of the common fisheries policy in a cost effective way.

Member States should monitor the activities of their fishing vessels in and outside Community waters. To facilitate effective monitoring masters of Community fishing vessels of 10 metres’ length overall or more should be obliged to keep a fishing logbook and submit landing and transhipment declarations. In order to make use of modern technologies, for fishing vessels of 12 metres’ length overall or more, the fishing logbook should be in electronic form and the landing and transhipment declarations should be submitted electronically.

The information contained in the fishing logbooks of fishing vessels should be verified at the time of landing. Accordingly, those involved in the landing and marketing of fish and fishery products should be required to declare the quantities landed, transhipped, offered for sale or purchased.

For small fishing vessels of less than 10 metres’ length overall an obligation to keep a fishing logbook or to complete a landing declaration would constitute a disproportionate burden in relation to their fishing capacity. In order to ensure an adequate level of control over such vessels, Member States should monitor their activities by the implementation of a sampling plan.

Transhipments at sea escape any proper control by flag or coastal states and therefore constitute a possible way for operators to carry illegal catch. To improve controls, transhipment operations in the Community should be authorised only in designated ports.

The Member States’ authorities should be able to monitor landings in their ports. To that end fishing vessels engaged in fisheries on stocks subject to a multiannual plan that are under the obligation to record fishing logbook data electronically should be required to pre-notify those authorities of their intention to land in their ports. Member States should be allowed to deny access if the required information is not complete.

Since the management of fishing resources is based on fishing opportunities it should be ensured that catches and deployed effort are correctly recorded and that the catches and deployed effort are charged against the quotas and effort allocations of the flag Member State. Fisheries should be closed if the available quota or effort allocation have been exhausted.

In view of the capacity requirements in the Community fishing fleet as contained in Article 13 of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002, Council Regulation (EC) No 639/2004 of 30 March 2004 on the management of fishing fleets registered in the Community outermost regions^f10, Commission Regulation (EC) No 1438/2003 of 12 August 2003 laying down implementing rules on the Community Fleet Policy as defined in Chapter III of Council Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002^f11 and Commission Regulation (EC) No 2104/2004 of 9 December 2004 laying down detailed implementation rules for Council Regulation (EC) No 639/2004^f12, instruments should be introduced for the control of the fleet capacity which should include the monitoring of the engine power and of the use of fishing gear. For that reason Member States should take measures to ensure that the total capacity of the fishing licences does not exceed the maximum capacity levels and ensure that the propulsion engine power of fishing vessels does not exceed the certified engine power of those vessels. Member States should for this purpose certify the propulsion engine power of fishing vessels whose propulsion engine power exceeds 120 kW and also verify on the basis of a sampling plan the consistency of engine power with other available information.

Particular measures should apply in case of multiannual plans as a particular form to protect the concerned stocks. Transhipments of catches of stocks subject to a multiannual plan should be allowed only in designated ports and only if these catches have been weighed.

Special provisions should be foreseen that only allowed gears are used and that lost gear is retrieved.

Special rules should apply to fishing restricted areas. The procedure for the establishment and lifting of real time closures for fishing grounds should be clearly established.

As recreational fisheries can have a significant impact on fish resources, Member States should ensure that they are conducted in a manner compatible with the objectives of the common fisheries policy. For stocks under a recovery plan Member States should collect catch data of recreational fisheries. Where such fisheries have a significant impact on the resources, the Council should have the possibility to decide on specific management measures.

In order to establish a comprehensive control regime, the whole chain of production and marketing should be covered by such a regime. It should include a coherent traceability system complementing the provisions contained in Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 28 January 2002 laying down the general principles and requirements of food law, establishing the European Food Safety Authority and laying down procedures in matters of food safety^f13, and an enhanced control of producer organisations. It should also protect the interests of consumers by providing the information concerning the commercial designation, the production method and the catch area at each stage of the marketing as contained in Commission Regulation (EC) No 2065/2001 of 22 October 2001 laying down detailed rules for the application of Council Regulation (EC) No 104/2000 as regards informing consumers about fishery and aquaculture products^f14. It should ensure the monitoring of producer organisations in accordance with Commission Regulation (EC) No 2508/2000 of 15 November 2000 laying down the detailed rules for the application of Council Regulation (EC) No 104/2000 as regards operational programmes in the fisheries sector^f15.

To ensure that all catches are properly controlled Member States should ensure that all fisheries products are first marketed or registered at an auction centre or to registered buyers or to producer organisations. As the exact weight of catches needs to be known to follow the utilisation of quotas, Member States should ensure that all fisheries products are weighed unless sampling plans based on a common methodology are in place.

In order to follow the way of the catch and to be able to verify their coherence with catch data, registered buyers, registered auctions or other bodies or persons authorised by Member States should submit sales notes. If they have an annual turnover in first sales of fisheries products of more than EUR 200 000 the sales notes should be transmitted electronically.

In order to ensure compliance with Community conservation and trade measures, steps should be taken to require all fishery products for which neither a sales note nor a take-over declaration has been submitted and which are transported to a place other than that of landing to be accompanied by a transport document identifying their nature, origin and weight unless a transport document has been transmitted electronically before the transport.

Member States should carry out regular checks on producer organisations to ensure that they meet the legal requirements. They should also carry out checks regarding the price and intervention arrangements.

Member States should carry out surveillance in Community waters and take the necessary measures if a sighting or detection does not correspond to the information available to them.

The concept and the tasks of control observers should be clearly established for future control observer schemes. At the same time rules should also be established on the conduct of inspections.

For the consistent and effective prosecution of infringements, provision should be made to enable inspection and surveillance reports drawn up by Commission officials, Community inspectors and officials of Member States to be used in the same way as national reports. At the same time Member States should set up an electronic database providing the inspection and surveillance reports of their officials.

To enhance a common level of control in Community waters a list of Community inspectors should be established and their tasks and competences should be clarified. For the same reason inspections of fishing vessels outside the waters of the inspecting Member State should be possible under certain conditions.

In the case of an infringement it should be ensured that the appropriate measures are taken and that the infringement can effectively be followed up irrespective of where it occurs. In certain cases of serious infringements there should be an enhanced follow-up to enable immediate investigation. In this respect Member States should also be obliged to take appropriate measures where an infringement has been discovered by a Community inspector. Under certain conditions it should be possible to transfer the proceedings to the flag Member State or the Member State of which the offender holds the citizenship.

Nationals of Member States should be deterred from committing infringements of the rules of the common fisheries policy. Since action taken following infringements of those rules differs widely from one Member State to another, thereby causing discrimination and unfair competition rules for fishermen and given that the absence of dissuasive, proportionate and effective sanctions in certain Member States reduces the effectiveness of controls, it is appropriate to introduce administrative sanctions in combination with a point system for serious infringements to provide a real deterrent.

The persistence of a high number of serious infringements of the rules of the common fisheries policy within Community waters or by Community operators is to a large extent attributable to the non-deterrent level of sanctions for serious infringements of those rules laid down in national legislation. That weakness is compounded by the wide discrepancy in the levels of sanctions between Member States, which encourages illegal operators to operate in waters or within the territory of the Member States where the sanctions are lowest. It is therefore appropriate to complement the maximum levels of sanctions for serious infringements of the rules of the common fisheries policy as laid down in Article 44 of Regulation (EC) No 1005/2008 with dissuasive sanctions, taking into account the nature of the damage, value of the fishery products obtained by committing the serious infringement, the economic situation of the offender and any repetition of an infringement. Immediate enforcement measures and complementary measures should also be laid down.

The establishment of sanctions should be complemented by a point system for serious infringements on the basis of which a fishing licence should be suspended if a certain number of points have been attributed to the holder of a fishing licence following the imposition of sanctions for serious infringements. If the fishing licences have been suspended five times on the basis of this system and again the number of points are attributed the fishing licence should be withdrawn altogether. In this context Member States should enter in a national register all infringements of the rules of the common fisheries policy.

To ensure the achievement of the objectives of the common fisheries policy the Commission should be able to take effective corrective measures. To this end the management capacity of the Commission and its capacity to intervene in a manner proportionate to the level of non-compliance by a Member State should be strengthened. The Commission should be empowered to undertake inspections without prior notice and in an independent way, so as to verify the control operations carried out by the competent authorities of Member States.

For the purposes of protecting the Community financial interest and securing the overriding interest in the conservation of fisheries resources, the financial assistance in the framework of Council Regulation (EC) No 1198/2006 of 27 July 2006 on the European Fisheries Fund^f16 and Council Regulation (EC) No 861/2006 of 22 May 2006 establishing Community financial measures for the implementation of the common fisheries policy and in the area of the Law of Sea^f17 should be made conditional upon compliance by Member States with their obligations in the fields of fisheries control and thus suspension and cancellation of such financial assistance should be foreseen in cases of an inadequate implementation of the rules of common fisheries policy by Member States which affects the effectiveness of the measures being financed.

Powers should be conferred to the Commission to close a fishery when the quota of a Member State or a TAC itself is exhausted. The Commission should also be empowered to deduct quotas and effort allocations to ensure the limitation of fishing opportunities are fully complied with. The Commission should also have the capacity to take emergency measures if there is evidence that fishing activities or measures of a Member State undermine the conservation and management measures of management plans or threaten the marine eco-system.

The exchange of data in electronic form with other Member States and the Commission or the body designated by it should be ensured. The Commission or the body designated by it should be in a position to access directly the fisheries data of Member States to enable it to verify that Member States comply with their obligations and to intervene where inconsistencies are identified.

For a better communication the competent authorities of Member States should set up websites with general information available on a publicly accessible part and operational information on a secure part of the website. It should also be ensured that the competent authorities of Member States for the implementation of this Regulation cooperate with each other, the Commission, the body designated by the Commission and the competent authorities of third countries.

The measures necessary for the implementation of this Regulation should be adopted in accordance with Council Decision 1999/468/EC of 28 June 1999 laying down the procedures for the exercise of implementing powers conferred on the Commission^f18. All measures adopted by the Commission to implement this Regulation should comply with the proportionality principle.

The mandate of the Community Fisheries Control Agency should be adjusted and extended to support the uniform implementation of the control system of the common fisheries policy, to ensure the organisation of operational cooperation, to provide assistance to Member States and to enable it to set up an emergency unit where a serious risk to the common fisheries policy is identified. It should also be enabled to provide itself with the necessary equipment to carry out joint deployment plans and to cooperate in the implementation of the EU Integrated Maritime Policy.

Data collected and exchanged in the framework of this Regulation should be treated in accordance with applicable rules on confidentiality. Directive 95/46/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 October 1995 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data^f19 should apply to the processing of personal data activities carried out by the Member States when applying this Regulation. Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 December 2000 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data by the Community institutions and bodies and on the free movement of such data^f20 should govern the processing of personal data activities carried out by the Commission in the application of this Regulation.

In order to bring the Community legislation in line with this Regulation certain Regulations pertaining to control provisions should be amended.

As this Regulation will establish a new, comprehensive control regime, Regulation (EEC) No 2847/93, Council Regulation (EC) No 1627/94 of 27 June 1994 laying down general provisions concerning special fishing permits^f21, and Council Regulation (EC) No 1966/2006 of 21 December 2006 on electronic recording and reporting of fishing activities and on means of remote sensing^f22 should be repealed.

In order to provide the Member States with the necessary time to adapt to some of the new obligations laid down in this Regulation, it is convenient to defer the applicability of certain provisions to a later date,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: