Recovery plan for fish stocks in the EU's seas

The plan requires deliberate and comprehensive work for rich ecosystems and ambitious environmental goals that are monitored with strict legislation. A legally binding recovery plan for fish stocks in EU waters is precisely such strict and monitorable regulation, to protect against the overexploitation of natural resources that the election manifesto points out. The plan also wants to defend and build further on the environmental progress made within the EU.

• restore ecosystemsdecisive»skapa goda villkor för rika ekosystem, bland annat genom att återställa« (party programme ↗)“create good conditions for rich ecosystems, among other things by restoring”
• strict environmental legislation»miljömål som följs upp med skarp lagstiftning och praktiskt arbete.« (party programme ↗)“environmental goals that are monitored with strict legislation and practical work.”
• stop overexploitation»Ett ständigt överutnyttjande av naturens resurser leder till kraftig utarmning av den biologiska mångfalden och växthusgasutsläpp.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Constant overexploitation of nature's resources leads to severe depletion of biodiversity and greenhouse gas emissions.”
• defend EU's environmental progress»De framsteg som trots förutsättningarna gjorts inom ramen för EU är« (party programme ↗)“The progress that despite the circumstances has been made within the EU is”

The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.

The plan states that the Baltic Sea is a sea in crisis and commits to safeguarding biological diversity and Sweden's aquatic environments. It also sees the EU as the platform for tightening environmental protection and wants Sweden to be a leading force to ensure that international environmental goals are truly achieved. A legally binding recovery plan for fish stocks is precisely such a tightening.

• safeguarding biological diversitydecisive»Värn av biologisk mångfald och Sveriges värdefulla natur och vattenmiljöer.« (party programme ↗)“Safeguarding of biological diversity and Sweden's valuable nature and aquatic environments.”
• the Baltic Sea in crisis»Östersjön har blivit ett hav i kris.« (party programme ↗)“The Baltic Sea has become a sea in crisis.”
• the EU tightens environmental protection»plattform för att på europeisk nivå skärpa skyddet av miljö, konsumenter och löntagare.« (party programme ↗)“platform for tightening the protection of the environment, consumers and employees at the European level.”
• Sweden driving forward environmental goals»Sverige som ledande kraft i världen för att överenskomna internationella miljö- och« (party programme ↗)“Sweden as a leading force in the world to ensure that agreed international environmental and”

The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.

The election manifesto requires that ecosystems in the seas set the limits for how much fish may be caught and that an ecosystem-based marine management is introduced. The party programme states that overfishing must be stopped and that international agreements to protect the seas must be tightened, with Sweden as a driving force. A legally binding EU plan to build up fish stocks is exactly such a tightening.

• ecosystem limits for fishingdecisive»låt ekosystemen i haven sätta gränserna för hur mycket fisk som får fångas, inför en ekosystembaserad havsförvaltning och gå över till skonsamma fiskemetoder.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“let ecosystems in the seas set the limits for how much fish may be caught, introduce ecosystem-based marine management and switch to gentle fishing methods.”
• stop overfishing»Överfisket måste stoppas och ersättas av ett hållbart fiske där skonsamma och selektiva redskap används.« (party programme ↗)“Overfishing must be stopped and replaced by sustainable fishing where gentle and selective gear is used.”
• tightened international marine agreements»De internationella avtalen för att skydda haven måste skärpas och Sverige ska vara pådrivande i detta arbete.« (party programme ↗)“International agreements to protect the seas must be tightened and Sweden shall be a driving force in this work.”
• protected marine areas»skydda minst 30 procent av världens hav.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“protect at least 30 percent of the world's seas.”

The plan wants to save Sweden's lakes, waterways, and seas and stipulates that harmful bottom trawling must not destroy the marine environment or small-scale fishing. Overfishing is pointed out as an environmental problem that restricts people's freedom, and the obligation to use without depleting applies to future generations. A binding EU plan to rebuild fish stocks is a tool that aligns with these commitments.

• save the seasdecisive»Rädda Sveriges sjöar, vattendrag och hav.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Save Sweden's lakes, waterways, and seas.”
• protect the marine environment and small-scale fishing»Skadlig bottentrålning ska inte få förstöra för varken havsmiljön, den småskaliga fiskenäringen eller sportfisket.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Harmful bottom trawling must not be allowed to destroy the marine environment, small-scale fishing, or sport fishing.”
• biological diversity»Att skydda den biologiska mångfalden är nödvändigt för att ekosystemen ska kunna fortleva.« (party programme ↗)“Protecting biological diversity is necessary for ecosystems to survive.”
• use without depleting»Vi har en skyldighet att bruka utan att förbruka, att inte föröda kretsloppen för kommande generationer.« (party programme ↗)“We have an obligation to use without depleting, not to destroy the cycles for future generations.”

The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.

The plan requires that fishing be conducted in the long-term sustainable way and stays within scientific assessments of what the stocks can tolerate, and the election manifesto that industrial fishing be limited and valuable sea areas protected. A binding EU plan to rebuild stocks is the tool that responds to that commitment, and the plan sees the EU as the most important instrument in environmental work. The counter-proposal's demands are thus supported.

• fishing within stock limitsdecisive»Fisket måste bedrivas på ett långsiktigt hållbart sätt och hålla sig inom ramen för vetenskapliga bedömningar av vad bestånden tål.« (party programme ↗)“Fishing must be conducted in a long-term sustainable way and stay within the bounds of scientific assessments of what the stocks can tolerate.”
• limited industrial fishing»Kampen mot övergödningen ska fortsätta, industrifisket ska begränsas och de mest värdefulla havsområdena skyddas som marina reservat.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The fight against eutrophication shall continue, industrial fishing shall be limited and the most valuable sea areas shall be protected as marine reserves.”
• raised EU ambitions»EU-samarbetet är vårt viktigaste instrument för att driva på miljöarbetet internationellt. EU:s ambitioner måste höjas och regelverken skärpas.« (party programme ↗)“EU cooperation is our most important instrument for driving forward environmental work internationally. EU's ambitions must be raised and regulations sharpened.”
• sea protection through agreement»Sverige omges av hav som behöver skyddas genom avtal mellan alla kuststater.« (party programme ↗)“Sweden is surrounded by seas that need to be protected through agreements between all coastal states.”

The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.

The plan requires that fishing is conducted with consideration to the stewardship principle and explicitly warns that overfishing will cause stocks to decline and the industry to die out in the long term. The precautionary principle applies in the event of risk of irreversible damage. Since the plan also points to the EU as the appropriate level for cross-border environmental issues, it supports the demand for a binding recovery plan for stocks in the union's waters.

• overfishing harms the industrydecisive»gynnar ingen utan resulterar endast i att tillgången sinar och att näringen på lång sikt dör ut.« (party programme ↗)“benefits no one but only results in resources diminishing and the industry dying out in the long run.”
• stewardship in fishing»allt annat nyttjande av naturresurser ske med hänsyn till förvaltarskapsprincipen.« (party programme ↗)“all other use of natural resources be done with consideration to the stewardship principle.”
• the precautionary principle»Med detta menas att om misstanke finns om hot eller oåterkallelig« (party programme ↗)“By this is meant that if there is suspicion of threat or irreversible”
• EU as the level for environmental issues»Då miljöproblemen är gränsöverskridande till sin natur är EU i många fall den mest lämpliga« (party programme ↗)“Since environmental problems are cross-border in nature, the EU is in many cases the most appropriate”

The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.

The counter-proposal wants the EU to adopt a binding plan to build up fish stocks as soon as possible. The plan states that declining stocks have hit the fishing industry hard and that development must be reversed, and promises concretely to move the trawl boundary from four to twelve nautical miles to curb the decline of herring and sprat. The programme points to overfishing as a remaining environmental problem, and the sea environment is an issue Sweden cannot solve alone.

• reverse declining fish stocksdecisive»Fiskerinäringen har drabbats hårt av minskade bestånd på senare år inte minst på grund av det kustnära trålfisket – den utvecklingen måste brytas.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The fishing industry has been hit hard by declining stocks in recent years, not least because of coastal trawling – that development must be reversed.”
• relocated trawl boundary»Stävja minskningen av sill-/strömmingsbestånden i Östersjön genom att flytta gränsen för trålfiske från fyra till tolv nautiska mil« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Curb the decline of herring and sprat stocks in the Baltic by moving the trawl boundary from four to twelve nautical miles”
• overfishing as environmental problem»utfiskning slår mot en levande havsmiljö« (party programme ↗)“overfishing strikes against a living sea environment”
• EU solves cross-border problems»EU:s fokus ska ligga på att lösa problem som Sverige inte kan hantera ensamt, till exempel handel, klimat, migration och säkerhet.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The EU's focus shall be on solving problems that Sweden cannot handle alone, such as trade, climate, migration and security.”

The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.

The plan states that marine and water environments must be prioritized more clearly ahead of excessively intensive fishing and wants to increase the pace of restoration of the Baltic Sea's marine environment. A binding plan to rebuild fish stocks in union waters, including Swedish waters, is the same prioritization in practice. The plan furthermore emphasizes that Sweden cannot solve the situation alone but needs international cooperation, even though it is generally restrictive towards supranational solutions.

• marine environment before intensive fishingdecisive»Vår havs- och vattenmiljö måste prioriteras tydligare framför ett allt för intensivt fiske och omfattande vindkraftsutbyggnad.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Our marine and water environment must be prioritized more clearly ahead of far too intensive fishing and extensive wind power expansion.”
• restored Baltic Sea environment»Öka takten i arbetet med att återställa havsmiljön i Östersjön« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Increase the pace of work to restore the marine environment in the Baltic Sea”
• international cooperation on seas»Mer fokus måste i detta sammanhang satsas på internationell samverkan mellan östersjöländerna då Sverige inte ensamt kan bidra till att lösa situationen.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“More focus must in this context be placed on international cooperation between Baltic Sea countries as Sweden cannot alone contribute to solving the situation.”
• intergovernmentalism before supranationalism»Återupprätta mellanstatligheten och stärka väljarnas påverkansmöjligheter« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Reestablish intergovernmentalism and strengthen voters' influence possibilities”

The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.