The overcapacity of the fishing fleet is an important reason why several fish stocks are overfished today. This means that fishing must be reduced to more sustainable levels to give fish stocks a chance to recover.
Sweden’s fisheries policy is part of the EU Common Fisheries Policy (CFP).
The objectives of fisheries policy and the legislation governing it have changed in recent decades. While the objectives in the past used to be geared mainly towards development of the industry, they are nowadays designed to ensure a long-term sustainable development: economically, socially and environmentally. The objectives of this legislation are to ensure the viability of the fisheries sector, so that fishermen can earn a living; to promote employment in small-scale coastal fisheries; and to stop overfishing that threatens fish stocks.
The overall orientation of the CFP also entails a requirement for the EU Member States to apply the precautionary approach in taking measures designed to protect and conserve living aquatic resources, to provide for their sustainable exploitation and to minimise the impact of fishing activities on marine eco-systems.
Riksrevisionen (the Swedish National Audit Office, SNAO) has examined whether the action taken by the Swedish central-government sector has been effective in promoting the intentions of the legislation governing fisheries policy and whether the Government and the various government agencies have fulfilled their obligations in the field of fisheries policy as laid down in that legislation.
The SNAO’s general conclusion is that, overall, the action taken has been ineffective. In fact, Sweden is moving away from the objectives in several material respects even though the problems concerned have been known for a long time, many policy instruments are being used and public spending for this purpose is high. The Government and the government agencies have also failed to ensure full compliance with legislation.
Compliance with the economic objective of a viable fisheries sector is deteriorating. A large proportion of commercial fishermen are experiencing a reduction in profitability, and the level of net profit for the fisheries sector as a whole has fallen strongly in recent years. Compliance with the social objective of promoting employment in small-scale coastal fisheries is also deteriorating.
The number of days spent at sea in the coastal-fisheries sector has fallen from just under 78,000 in 2002 to just under 62,000 in 2007. And the objectives relating to an environmentally sustainable development are also not being met.
According to reports on the environmental objectives set by the Riksdag (parliament), the situation of several fish stocks is critical; in certain cases the situation has grown worse. What is more, the relative size of stocks of different species has changed considerably, which may have an impact on the maritime eco-system as a whole.
The SNAO’s audit is part of a joint Baltic audit. The supreme audit institutions of Denmark, Germany, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Russia and Finland are conducting parallel audits of the state of marine life in the Baltic Sea. The Danish national audit office (Rigsrevisionen) will compile a joint Baltic report to be published in February 2009.