Torremolinos International Convention for the Safety of Fishing Vessels (1977): authorising Member States to sign, ratify or accede to the Cape Town Agreement of 2012 on the implementation of the provisions of the 1993 Torremolinos Protocol

PURPOSE: to authorise Member States to accede to the Cape Town Agreement of 2012 on the implementation of the provisions of the 1993 Protocol relating to the Torremolinos International Convention for the Safety of Fishing Vessels, 1977.

NON-LEGISLATIVE ACT: Council Decision 2014/195/EU authorising Member States to sign, ratify or accede to the Cape Town Agreement of 2012 on the Implementation of the Provisions of the Torremolinos Protocol of 1993 relating to the Torremolinos International Convention for the Safety of Fishing Vessels, 1977.

CONTENT: this Decision authorises Member States to sign, sign and ratify, or accede to, as appropriate, the Cape Town Agreement of 2012 on the Implementation of the Provisions of the Torremolinos Protocol of 1993 relating to the Torremolinos International Convention for the Safety of Fishing Vessels, 1977. The Torremolinos Protocol relating to the Torremolinos International Convention for the Safety of Fishing Vessels, 1977 was adopted on 2 April 1993. Council Directive 97/70/EC lays down safety standards, based on the Torremolinos Protocol, for fishing vessels of 24 metres in length and over while taking, as far as necessary, full account of regional and local circumstances. The Torremolinos Protocol has not entered into force because the necessary minimum requirements in terms of ratification have not been achieved.

In order to establish, by common accord and under the auspices of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO), the highest practicable standards for the safety of fishing vessels that can be implemented by all the States concerned, the Cape Town Agreement of 2012 on the Implementation of the Provisions of the Torremolinos Protocol of 1993 relating to the Torremolinos International Convention for the Safety of Fishing Vessels, 1977 was adopted on 11 October 2012.

It is in the interests of maritime safety and fair competition that the Agreement be ratified or acceded to by Member States having fishing vessels flying their flag which fall within the scope of application of the Agreement, and which operate in their internal waters or territorial sea, or which land catch in their port, to ensure the entry into force of the provisions of the Torremolinos Protocol.