Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/1708 of 23 September 2021 adding to the 2021 fishing quotas certain quantities withheld in the year 2020 pursuant to Article 4(2) of Council Regulation (EC) No 847/96

THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 847/96 of 6 May 1996 introducing additional conditions for year-to-year management of TACs and quotas (1), and in particular Article 4(2) thereof,

Whereas:

(1) Pursuant to Article 4(2) of Regulation (EC) No 847/96, Member States may, before 31 October of the year of application of a fishing quota allocated to them, ask the Commission to withhold a maximum of 10 % of the quota and to transfer it to the following year.

(2) Council Regulations (EU) 2018/2025 (2), (EU) 2019/1838 (3), (EU) 2019/2236 (4) and (EU) 2020/123 (5) fix fishing quotas for certain stocks for 2020 and specify which stocks may be subject to the measures provided for in Regulation (EC) No 847/96.

(3) Council Regulations (EU) 2020/1579 (6), (EU) 2021/90 (7), (EU) 2021/91 (8) and (EU) 2021/92 (9) fix fishing quotas for certain stocks for 2021.

(4) Certain Member States have requested, before 31 October 2020, pursuant to Article 4(2) of Regulation (EC) No 847/96, that part of their quotas for 2020 for the stocks listed in the Annex to this Regulation be withheld and transferred to the following year. Subject to the limits indicated in that Regulation, the quantities withheld should be added to the quotas for 2021.

(5) For the purposes of this flexibility exercise, the eligibility of requested stock transfers and the state of exploitation of these stocks have been verified and taken into account. Therefore these stocks can be subject to the transfer of quota withheld from 2020 to 2021 in line with Article 4(2) of Regulation (EC) No 847/96.

(6) In order to avoid excessive flexibility that would undermine the principle of rational and responsible exploitation of living marine biological resources, hinder the achievement of the objectives of the Common Fisheries Policy and deteriorate the biological status of the stocks, the year-to-year flexibility provided for by Article 15(9) of Regulation (EU) No 1380/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council (10) is excluded for the stocks listed in the Annex to this Regulation.

(7) The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Committee for Fisheries and Aquaculture,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

The fishing quotas fixed for 2021 in Regulations (EU) 2020/1579, (EU) 2021/90, (EU) 2021/91 and (EU) 2021/92 are increased as set out in the Annex to this Regulation.

Article 2

This Regulation shall enter into force on the seventh day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.

Done at Brussels, 23 September 2021.

For the Commission The President Ursula VON DER LEYEN

(1) OJ L 115, 9.5.1996, p. 3.

(2) Council Regulation (EU) 2018/2025 of 17 December 2018 fixing for 2019 and 2020 the fishing opportunities for Union fishing vessels for certain deep-sea fish stocks (OJ L 325, 20.12.2018, p. 7).

(3) Council Regulation (EU) 2019/1838 of 30 October 2019 fixing for 2020 the fishing opportunities for certain fish stocks and groups of fish stocks applicable in the Baltic Sea and amending Regulation (EU) 2019/124 as regards certain fishing opportunities in other waters (OJ L 281, 31.10.2019, p. 1).

(4) Council Regulation (EU) 2019/2236 of 16 December 2019 fixing for 2020 the fishing opportunities for certain fish stocks and groups of fish stocks applicable in the Mediterranean and Black Seas (OJ L 336, 30.12.2019, p. 14).

(5) Council Regulation (EU) 2020/123 of 27 January 2020 fixing for 2020 the fishing opportunities for certain fish stocks and groups of fish stocks, applicable in Union waters and, for Union fishing vessels, in certain non-Union waters (OJ L 25, 30.1.2020, p. 1).

(6) Council Regulation (EU) 2020/1579 of 29 October 2020 fixing for 2021 the fishing opportunities for certain fish stocks and groups of fish stocks applicable in the Baltic Sea and amending Regulation (EU) 2020/123 as regards certain fishing opportunities in other waters (OJ L 362, 30.10.2020, p. 3).

(7) Council Regulation (EU) 2021/90 of 28 January 2021 fixing for 2021 the fishing opportunities for certain fish stocks and groups of fish stocks applicable in the Mediterranean and Black Seas (OJ L 31, 29.1.2021, p. 1).

(8) Council Regulation (EU) 2021/91 of 28 January 2021 fixing, for the years 2021 and 2022, the fishing opportunities for Union fishing vessels for certain deep-sea fish stocks (OJ L 31, 29.1.2021, p. 20).

(9) Council Regulation (EU) 2021/92 of 28 January 2021 fixing for 2021 the fishing opportunities for certain fish stocks and groups of fish stocks, applicable in Union waters and, for Union fishing vessels, in certain non-Union waters (OJ L 31, 29.1.2021 p. 31).

(10) Regulation (EU) No 1380/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 December 2013 on the Common Fisheries Policy, amending Council Regulations (EC) No 1954/2003 and (EC) No 1224/2009 and repealing Council Regulations (EC) No 2371/2002 and (EC) No 639/2004 and Council Decision 2004/585/EC (OJ L 354, 28.12.2013, p. 22).