The European Commission announced, on 25 November, that it had signed two administrative cooperation agreements with Canada and Iceland to prevent, deter and eliminate illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing. The agreed records between the parties recognise that the control systems in place in the two countries equal the level of control laid down in the new EU regulation against IUU fishing. The agreements will also enhance cooperation in the fight against IUU fishing between the respective authorities.

The Commission has been involved in the fight against IUU fishing for over a decade. In 2002, it adopted an action plan inspired by the Food and Agriculture Organisation’s 2001 international plan of action to prevent, deter and eliminate IUU fishing. It intensified its actions by adopting the so-called ‘IUU regulation’, in September 2008. The regulation forms part of the EU’s fisheries control policy and will enter into force on 1 January 2010. One of the core elements of this regulation is the introduction of a catch certification scheme, which will ensure that all maritime fisheries products that are to be traded with the EU are obtained in compliance with existing conservation and management measures.

The IUU regulation is a transparent and non-discriminatory instrument applying to all fishing vessels engaged in the commercial exploitation of fishery resources in all maritime waters. It seeks to prevent, deter and eliminate IUU fishing in as much as it is linked to the EU either through trade to and from its territory or the involvement of EU nationals in IUU fishing activities conducted under any flag. It also provides a comprehensive legal basis for cooperation between third countries and the EU to combat IUU fishing more efficiently.