[ad_1]
On Tuesday (23 July), Carmen Crespo Díaz, a Spanish MP from the European People’s Party (EPP), was unanimously elected as Chair of the European Parliament’s Fisheries Committee, an appointment welcomed by industry and environmental NGOs.
Four vice-presidents were also elected: Sander Smit (EPP, Netherlands), Giuseppe Milazzo (European Regeneration, Italy), Stéphanie Yon-Courtin (Renew, France) and Jessica Polfjärd (EPP, Sweden).
“We will work to do better for European fisheries and I am sure we will do it in five years for this industry which is very fragile and important for our communities,” said the newly elected MEP for Andalusia, Spain, where she is responsible for agriculture and fisheries policy.
Regional roots
The fact that Crespo comes from a region specialized in food production was welcomed by industry representatives and environmental associations.
Europêche, Europe’s leading industrial fisheries representative, told Euractiv that Crespo’s election was welcome because she “Gain insights into the challenges and opportunities facing the fisheries sector,” And her “and has a strong background in local and regional governance”.
This “allows her to better steer the commission towards sustainable fisheries policies that benefit coastal communities”, the lobby group added.
NGOs have also highlighted the same advantages. “Carmen has considerable influence within the European People’s Party and has a strong regional political background,” Natividad Sanchez, communications director at Oceana Europe, told Euractiv.
She added: “Her time as Andalusia’s regional minister for agriculture, fisheries, water and rural development showed her commitment to better aligning regional fisheries management with wider EU objectives.”
NGO warnings
Still, NGOs fear the EPP could back the interests of the industry. Sanchez said economic growth was a hobby of the centre-right but “could come at the expense of environmental protection”.
“We hope that Ms. Crespo’s new leadership will also place a high priority on strengthening the environmental aspects of fisheries management in order to achieve a truly sustainable future for the industry,” Sánchez concluded.
(Editing by Angelo Di Mambro and Zoran Radosavljevic)
Read more by Euractiv
[ad_2]
Source link
