Malta calls for 'substantial increase' in bluefin tuna quota

Malta told the EU that it should be allowed to fish more bluefin tuna, thanks to the sector’s recovery. This was announced by Fisheries Parliamentary Secretary Roderick Galdes during the Agriculture and Fisheries council in Luxembourg.

“The Maltese delegation argued that the tuna sector’s recovery should be used to give a strong signal that conservation measures to pay,” a government statement said. “They explained that these signals can only be given through an immediate, fair, and substantial increase in the bluefin tuna quota.”

The government said that Malta’s Bluefin tuna sector enjoys “the most advanced system of management and control measures in the world”.

EU discussions will intensify in the coming weeks and a final decision on Bluefin tuna quota will be taken at the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas’ annual meeting which will be held in Genoa between 10 and 17 November 2014.