On the general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2027 - all sections

The Committee on Fisheries calls on the Committee on Budgets, as the committee responsible, to incorporate the following into its motion for a resolution:

1. Recalls the strategic role of the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) and the economic, social and environmental importance of fisheries, aquaculture, processing and maritime affairs in ensuring food security and strategic food sovereignty, healthy and resilient marine ecosystems, and a competitive, sustainable, resilient and equitable blue economy; recalls that the Union's self-sufficiency in aquatic food products remains low and that strong and sustainable fisheries, aquaculture and processing sectors are essential to the Union's food security and strategic autonomy; highlights the importance of aquatic food products in healthy diets, as products rich in protein and among the most sustainable animal protein sources, with a low-carbon footprint depending on the fishing or production method;

2. Recalls that fisheries, aquaculture and processing sectors are fundamental pillars of the economic, social and cultural fabric of Union coastal, island and outermost communities and that the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund (EMFAF) remains a fundamental funding programme for fishers, aquaculture producers, the processing sector and the cohesion of those communities; highlights the essential role of fisheries and aquaculture in strengthening the Union's competitiveness and resilience by safeguarding food security, encouraging innovation, supporting quality jobs and reinforcing the resilience of coastal, island and outermost communities; underlines that the relevant 2027 Union funding should back investment, foster innovation, including in fishing gear and methods, simplify procedures, support decarbonisation and the modernisation of the Union's fishing fleet, while effective control and monitoring ensure that funds reach their intended beneficiaries;

3. Notes that, according to the Commission's 2027 estimates, the main fisheries-related budget lines, namely EMFAF, Sustainable Fisheries Partnership Agreements, Regional Fisheries Management Organisations and the European Fisheries Control Agency (EFCA), amount to approximately EUR 1.016 billion in commitment appropriations, representing an increase of around 2.1 % compared to 2026, and EUR 1.222 billion in payment appropriations, representing an increase of around 10.7 % compared to 2026; stresses that this level must support the competitiveness and resilience, as well as the needs of the fisheries and aquaculture sectors, including data collection, control, international ocean governance, decarbonisation, biodiversity, the promotion of sustainable aquatic food products, innovation in fishing gear, fleet modernisation and generational renewal, and coastal communities; stresses that the appropriations must be fully and swiftly implemented, given the persistent under-implementation of EMFAF, and that particular attention should be given to regions, communities and fleet segments in sea basins facing the greatest structural and socio-economic pressures; highlights that fishers, aquaculture producers and their representative organisations should be regularly consulted, through structured dialogue, in the definition and evaluation of these budget priorities;

4. Emphasises that persistent inflationary pressures and rising fuel prices, maintenance and other operating costs are significantly reducing the sustainability and competitiveness of fisheries and aquaculture businesses; calls for sufficient 2027 appropriations for targeted support measures and appropriate compensation, within the applicable legal framework, to address exceptional increases in production costs;

5. Calls on the Commission to simplify, streamline and facilitate access to EMFAF and other ocean-related funding instruments, especially for SMEs, small-scale fishers, aquaculture producers and producer organisations; stresses that simplification must reduce unnecessary administrative burdens while maintaining effective and proportionate controls and eligibility safeguards, and upholding the objectives of the CFP;

6. Stresses that, as the current programming period enters the final implementation phase of EMFAF under the current MFF, available flexibility should be used to support the full implementation, absorption and effective use of the available funds; calls on the Commission and the Member States to ensure their timely deployment and remove unnecessary administrative obstacles so that funding reaches fisheries and aquaculture operators, including through simplified application and reporting requirements, faster approval and payment procedures and adequate pre-financing; calls for available flexibility to be used for regions and communities facing a severe and prolonged crisis in their fisheries and aquaculture sectors; emphasizes that any extension of implementation deadlines should not be made at the expense of budgetary allocations for fisheries and aquaculture under the next MFF;

7. Welcomes the European Ocean Pact, the Commission's forthcoming Ocean Act and recent communications on islands and coastal communities, recalling the importance of thriving, competitive, profitable and sustainable fisheries and aquaculture sectors for coastal economies and healthy oceans, as well as the specific challenges faced by islands and coastal communities, including higher costs, accessibility gaps, climate vulnerability and demographic pressure; emphasises that ocean-related initiatives and strategies must be supported by specific and sufficient public funding and investment incentives, involve fishers, aquaculture producers, coastal communities and scientific bodies, particularly the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES), the Scientific, Technical and Economic Committee for Fisheries (STECF) and national marine-research institutes, and be followed by concrete instruments in the next MFF with the full involvement of local authorities; insists that the post-2027 MFF maintain a dedicated fund for fisheries and aquaculture, with a ring-fenced, clearly identifiable budget line and its own allocation, so as to safeguard the visibility, predictability and accessibility of Union funding for the sectors, and that its resources be substantially increased, taking into account the specific needs of small-scale fleets across the Union; calls, within the relevant 2027 budget lines, for adequate support for Atlantic cooperation on connectivity, the sustainable blue economy, resilience, international cooperation and sustainable ocean governance;

8. Emphasises the importance of objective scientific data, including social, environmental and economic marine-related data, and data on the socio-economic impacts on coastal, island and outermost regions, to strengthen sustainable, resource-efficient and ecosystem-based fisheries management; calls for enhanced support from the Union and Member States for scientific institutions in the collection, monitoring and analysis of data, in particular in sea basins under severe environmental pressure, so that scientific advice and stock assessments can better account for environmental degradation and multispecies interactions, including predation, while ensuring that related technical and administrative requirements are commensurate with the capacities and scale of regional authorities, and for investment in innovative, selective, science-based and sustainable fishing gear and technologies across fleet segments, so as to improve selectivity and reduce unwanted by-catches;

9. Calls for the establishment of an Atlantic deep sea observatory, which should serve to improve knowledge and understanding of deep sea environments and promote a sustainable blue economy; believes that the observatory should contribute to and form part of the initiative entitled ‘OceanEye – Monitoring the blue planet for science, sustainability and society’ and should bolster observation, monitoring and data-sharing capacities for deep oceans;

10. Stresses the importance of giving special and particular support to the small-scale and artisanal fishing fleet, especially on islands and in remote regions, while also enabling appropriate support for the renewal of an ageing Union fleet across all its segments, including those that have reached an average age of more than 40 years; reaffirms that improving safety, working conditions, energy efficiency, access to opportunities and environmental sustainability, including vessel modernisation and, where appropriate, renewal that does not increase the fishing capacity of the vessel, should contribute to generational renewal and the economic viability of the small-scale and artisanal fisheries sector while preventing overcapacity and overfishing; stresses that support for modernisation aimed at improving safety and energy efficiency should not be refused solely on grounds relating to fleet capacity where the investment does not increase the fishing capacity of the vessel;] calls for simplified administrative and licensing procedures and a sufficient financial allocation to ensure effective access to modernisation and renewal support for the small-scale and artisanal fleet; calls on the Commission to assess, within the applicable legal framework, how social and safety-related tonnage and technical criteria concerning propulsion power and gross tonnage affect access to support, particularly in the outermost regions, so that investments improving safety, working conditions and energy efficiency are facilitated without increasing fishing capacity;

11. Stresses that climate change, pollution, biodiversity loss and the increased presence of new alien predatory species and, where relevant, growing populations of protected predator species, such as seals and cormorants, have negative consequences on marine ecosystems and the fishing sector; calls for adequate financial support, including rapid and flexible support in cases of climate, environmental or market crises affecting fishers and aquaculture producers, to strengthen the resilience of the sectors; also calls, within the applicable legal framework, for rapid and adequate compensation for lost income in cases of compulsory temporary cessation, natural disasters, serious market disturbances or damage from invasive alien species, and for adequate support in crises caused by long-term catch limits, fuel-price volatility and maritime spatial pressures; calls for financial and technical support for fishers affected by real-time closures, including timely information, digital tools, temporary compensation where justified and assistance in identifying alternative fishing grounds; calls for properly funded, rapid and flexible crisis financing under EMFAF, with simplified access and predictable disbursement, and for support for scientific research, management and control of invasive alien species, preventive measures and compensation for gear damage and income losses;

12. Stresses the key role of Regional Fisheries Management Organisations (RFMOs) in ensuring sustainable fisheries worldwide and the importance of adequate resources for a strong and coordinated Union position at their meetings, including through appropriate representation of the European Parliament and stakeholders, especially fishers; emphasises that sustainable fisheries require effective and proportionate monitoring, control and surveillance systems; calls, in that regard, for sufficient resources for EFCA, in particular to strengthen its patrol capacity and upgrade its surveillance systems;

13. Underlines that fishers affected by severe quota reductions, fishing closures and the collapse of key stocks must receive adequate, timely and predictable transitional support; calls for sufficient EMFAF funding for temporary and permanent cessation of fishing activities, diversification of affected businesses, retraining and social protection for the fishers and workers concerned; stresses that fisheries and coastal communities in sea basins facing exceptional social and economic challenges arising from the long-term deterioration of fish resources, environmental degradation, eutrophication, climate change and long-term catch limits require targeted financial support, particularly for those most severely affected;

14. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to improve sustainable Union aquaculture production by addressing the bottlenecks and constraints identified, accelerating licensing procedures, and reducing dependence on imports from third countries; stresses the need for Union financing and trade policy to ensure a level playing field and reciprocity, in line with WTO rules, so that imported fishery and aquaculture products meet health, environmental, social and sustainability standards equivalent to those applicable in the Union; stresses that appropriate use of EMFAF funds can help diversify and increase Union aquaculture production and support supplementary activities such as pescatourism, while contributing to gender equality and generational renewal;

15. Calls for targeted funding for research, development and deployment of low-emission propulsion systems and zero-emission propulsion systems, sustainable alternative fuels and energy-efficiency technologies adapted to all different fleet segments, types of fishing and gear types, in order to reduce emissions and dependency on fossil fuels, including the necessary infrastructure adaptations in Union ports, particularly in island and outermost regions; stresses that the transition should be technology-neutral, adequately funded, economically and technically viable, adapted to operators' real capacities and should not impose disproportionate costs or obligations on the small-scale and artisanal fleet;

16. Stresses that adequately funded training and education, in particular for young and new fishers and aquaculture producers, and a skilled and diverse workforce are key for achieving generational renewal, including gender equality; calls for a New Generations for the Ocean approach, supporting technical, entrepreneurial, digital and safety training, start-up incentives and access to the sector for young fishers and aquaculture entrepreneurs, including financial incentives and support for access to finance, as well as mentoring and the intergenerational transfer of fishing businesses; calls on the Commission to assess a clear Union definition of a "new entrant fisher" and targeted EMFAF support for new entrant fishers, in accordance with the CFP;

17. Reiterates the need for specific, dedicated financial support to coastal communities, islands and outermost regions, with particular regard to Member States with many islands, to small and remote islands, and to communities facing structural and socio-economic pressures, including proper compensation for additional costs for fishery and aquaculture products in line with the Treaties; calls, for the outermost regions, for a specific mechanism to compensate additional fuel, transport, supply, ice, maintenance, storage, port-service and distribution costs borne by fishers, aquaculture producers and processing and trading companies in those regions, including through a dedicated POSEI-type fisheries financial instrument; calls for administrative simplification, dedicated one-stop shops and measures eliminating administrative and financial barriers faced by small-scale fisheries producer organisations, small-scale fishers and aquaculture producers; stresses that such support should help maintain permanent habitation, employment, food security and social and territorial cohesion in island regions; calls for earmarked support for the modernisation, increased resilience and sustainable development of fishing ports and landing infrastructure, especially in regions heavily dependent on fisheries.