EUROPA

SUMMARY

To implement the Common Fisheries Policy, the EFF may grant financial support to meet the economic, environmental and social goals in order to:

• ensure the long-term future of fishing activities and the sustainable use of fishery resources;
• reduce pressure on stocks by matching EU fleet capacity to available fishery resources;
• promote the sustainable development of inland fishing;
• help boost economically viable enterprises in the fisheries sector and make operating structures more competitive;
• foster the protection of the environment and marine resources;
• encourage sustainable development and improve the quality of life in areas with an active fishing industry;
• promote equality between women and men active in the fisheries sector.

Priorities

The EFF provides for five priorities:

• measures to adapt the EU fishing fleet: financial assistance will be available to fishermen and fishing vessel owners affected by the measures taken to combat overfishing or to protect public health to help them temporarily or permanently lay up fishing vessels and to train, re-skill and provide early retirement to fishermen. Vessels that are permanently laid up, in addition to those already due for scrapping, may be reused for other non-fishing activities or for the creation of artificial reefs. The EFF may contribute to improving working conditions, the quality of products, energy yield and catch selectivity. It may also contribute towards replacing engines, providing non-renewable compensation to fishermen affected by permanent cessation of fishing activities and for premiums for young fishermen to buy their first fishing vessel. However, financial assistance may in no circumstances lead to an increase in the catch capacity or the power of the fishing vessel's engine;
• aquaculture, inland fishing, processing and marketing:
  the EFF will promote the purchase and use of gear and methods that reduce the impact of fishing on the environment and improve human and animal health and safety and the quality of produce. Assistance will be limited to micro, small and medium enterprises rather than a few large enterprises. Priority will be given to micro and small enterprises;
• collective action:
  the following projects will be eligible for aid: those which contribute to the sustainable development or conservation of resources, to improving the services offered by fishing ports, to strengthening markets in fishery products and to promoting partnerships between scientists and operators in the fisheries sector;
• sustainable development of coastal fishing areas: the EFF will support measures and initiatives aimed at diversifying and strengthening economic development in areas affected by the decline in fishing activities.
• technical assistance: the Fund may finance initiatives involving preparations, monitoring, administrative and technical support, evaluation, audit and checks needed to implement the proposed Regulation.

Programming*

One of the main objectives of the EFF is to simplify the allocation and management of funding. Member States must send the Commission a strategic plan and an operational programme in order to benefit from assistance under the EFF.

The national strategic plans must set out the national priorities and objectives to implement the CFP. The Commission will organise a debate with Member States by 31 December 2011 to assess the progress made in implementing the strategic plans on the basis of the information it receives.

The strategic plans will form a basis for the operational programmes, which will implement the policies and priorities to be co-financed by the EFF. The Commission will approve the operational programmes by issuing a decision, after having checked that they are in line with the objectives of the EFF. If necessary, it may require that the operational programmes be modified.

The operational programmes will be assessed in three stages. Member States are responsible for forecast and interim assessments whilst the Commission is responsible for the final assessment of the programme's effectiveness. The part of the budget reserved for technical assistance may be used to finance these assessments.

Responsibilities

The Regulation defines the responsibilities of the Member States and of the Commission concerning the EFF. In particular, Member States are tasked with informing the general public, potential beneficiaries and stakeholders of the opportunities available under the EFF to ensure that the Fund is used in a transparent manner and to underline the role of the EU.

Financial framework

The EFF has a budget of €3 849 million for the period 2007-13. Over that period the Commission proposes to allocate €538 - 556 million per year to all the 25 Member States.

The amounts will be divided between the Member States according to the size of their fisheries sector, the number of people working in the sector, the adjustments considered necessary for the fishing industry and continuity of the measures in hand.

Except for certain expenditure incurred by the Commission that is 100% covered by the EFF, the maximum contribution of the EFF is always calculated as a proportion of the total sum of all public expenditure. It varies according to the priority of the initiative and will be higher for the most disadvantaged regions and for the new Member States, i.e. those covered by the new "convergence" objective under the Structural Funds. The intensity of public aid authorised for each operation financed also varies according to the same parameters (see Annex II to the Regulation).

The Regulation sets the rules governing eligibility of expenditure (Article 55), financial management, financial corrections, budgetary appropriations and reimbursement. It establishes a Committee of the European Fisheries Fund to assist the Commission in managing the EFF.

Management, monitoring and control

Each Member State must appoint the following bodies before requests for payment can be submitted:

• a managing authority for the programme to select and monitor initiatives to be financed;
• a certification authority to verify that expenditure complies with EU rules;
• an audit authority to verify the proper functioning of the managing and certification authorities;
• a monitoring committee, which a representative of the Commission participates in for advisory purposes and which assesses progress in reaching the objectives of the operational programme.

Each year the managing authorities must send the Commission an annual report, to which the Commission replies with its comments. The Commission summarises these reports in its own annual report which it sends to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions. The Member States must also send a final report on the implementation of the operational programme before 31 March 2017.

Context

The EFF is the new instrument for fisheries programming under the Financial Perspective for the EU for the 2007-13 period, replacing the Financial instrument for Fisheries Guidance (FIFG).

As of 1 January 2007, this Regulation repeals Council Regulation (EC) No 1263/1999 of 21 June 1999 on the FIFG and Council Regulation (EC) No 2792/1999 of 17 December 1999 laying down the detailed rules and arrangements regarding EU structural assistance in the fisheries sector.

Like the other European Funds, the EFF reflects the principles of the new approach for simplification, transparency, strategic planning and greater responsibility for the Member States in selecting and implementing the Funds. The EFF will be the sole instrument for expenditure incurred under the CFP and will replace the four budgetary headings used at present.