Agreed record of fisheries consultations between the EU, Norway and the UK for sprat for the period 1 July 2021 to 30 June 2022
Updated 8 December 2023
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A European Union Delegation, headed by Mr Fabrizio DONATELLA, a Norwegian Delegation. headed by Ms Ann Kristin WESTBERG, and a United Kingdom Delegation, headed by Mr Colin FAULKNER, met virtually in the period 14 - 18 June 2021 to consult on mutual fisheries relations for sprat in ICES Division 3a and Subareas 4 and Division 2a for 1 July 2021 to 30 June 2022.
The Delegations noted that, since 2019, the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) advice for sprat encompasses both the North Sea and Skagerrak/Kattegat and considers this a single stock. The parties agreed that as a consequence, the stock should now be reviewed through the trilateral consultations between the European Union, Norway and the United Kingdom.
The Norwegian and the European Union Delegations noted that, in 2020, they agreed on a method to distribute the ICES single stock advice, which resulted in an allocation of 18.3% of the overall advice as the basis for setting the TAC for the Skagerrak/Kattegat.
The United Kingdom delegation noted that it had not, in its own right, been party to that 2020 decision on allocation. It further noted that the 2018 ICES bench-marking exercise for the stock had proposed a variety of metrics which could guide the decision on allocating the TAC between the 2 areas in addition to the use of historic TACs. It urged the parties to adopt an allocation method which more accurately reflects the spatial distribution of the resource.
The Norwegian Delegation agreed with the UK delegation that, as a principle, allocation methods should reflect the spatial distribution of fish stocks.
The Delegations agreed to recommend to their respective authorities the following fishery arrangements for the period 1 July 2021 to 30 June 2022, as outlined in this Agreed Record.
The Delegations noted that ICES released the advice on sprat in Division 3a and Subarea 4 (Skagerrak, Kattegat and North Sea) on 13 April 2021. Based on its Maximum Sustainable Yield (MSY) approach, ICES advises that catches in the Skagerrak, Kattegat and North Sea for the period from 1 July 2021 to 30 June 2022 should be no more than 106,715 tonnes.
The Delegations agreed to apply a split of the TAC between North Sea and Skagerrak which would allocate 18.3% of the TAC to the Skagerrak in the period 1 July 2021 to 30 June 2022.
The Delegations consequently agreed to establish a TAC for sprat in ICES Division 3.a (Skagerrak and Kattegat) of 19,529 tonnes and for ICES Subarea 4 of 87,186 tonnes for the period 1 July 2021 to 30 June 2022. This is a decrease of 49% compared to the previous TAC period.
The Delegations agreed to work in order to increase the quality of the scientific advice for sprat in ICES Division 3a and Subarea 4, both in the short and longer term. For the period 1 July 2021 to 30 June 2022, should surveys undertaken later in 2021 indicate that there may be a significant change in the stock abundance. Delegations will consult further ahead of the 2022 to 2023 annual consultations.
By correspondence. 18 June 2021
For the European Union Delegation, Fabrizio DONA TELLA
For the Norwegian Delegation, Ann Kristin WESTBERG
For the United Kingdom delegation, Colin FAULKNER