Mr. Bernard Friess
1 August 2019
Director
Ref.
Directorate-General for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries
European Commission
B-1049 Brussels
Sent by e-mail to:
xxxxxxxx.xxxxxx@xx.xxxxxx.xx
Subject: Updating the Scheveningen Group’s joint recommendation for
a demersal discard plan in light of the scientific assessment
Dear Mr Friess,
Thank you for the letter of 26 July 2019 with your comments to the revised joint
recommendation from the Scheveningen Group regarding the amendment to the
discard plan for the demersal fisheries in the North Sea.
On behalf of the Scheveningen Group, I have the honour of transmitting to you a
second revised Joint Recommendation for the amendment of Commission
Delegated Regulation (EU) no. 2018/2035 of 18 October 2018 on the discard plan
for demersal fisheries in the North Sea 2019-2021.
As previously mentioned, in preparing the requests for the amendment to the
discard plan, the Scheveningen Group took note of the comments made by STECF
in 2018. However, it appears that for two de minimis exemptions previously
granted, additional scientific information has been called for by the STECF. The
Scheveningen Group would again urge the Commission to allow Member States to
provide such information as quickly as possible and for the exemptions to be
granted on a temporary basis for 2020. The exemptions are currently in brackets.
Should the European Commission conclude that these de minimis requests and
conditions would endanger the adoption of the delegated act, the Scheveningen
Group is prepared to allow the Commission to regard the two bracketed exemption
requests as removed from the joint recommendation and not include them in a
delegated act.
Against this background, the Scheveningen Group has adopted the enclosed
revised Joint Recommendation with a view to amend Commission Delegated
Regulation (EU) no 2018/2035.
I remain available for any inquiry you may have in this regard.
Yours sincerely,
Chair of the Scheveningen Member States Group