Fisheries agreement EEC/Sao Tome and Príncipe: period from 1st June 2005 to 31st May 2006

 The committee adopted the report by Duarte FREITAS (EPP-ED, PT) broadly approving the proposed extension of the fishing protocol with São Tomé and Príncipe. The committee nevertheless adopted a few amendments under the consultation procedure repeating Parliament's previously-expressed comments regarding the provision of  information before any renewal of fisheries agreements:

- Parliament's opinion on the extension or conclusion of fisheries partnership agreements should be sought as swiftly as possible, so that those opinions are not requested after the date of payment of any financial compensation;

- before any agreement is concluded on renewing the protocol, the Commission should submit to Parliament and Council a report on the application of the agreement and the conditions under which it was implemented, as well as the positions of the EU Member States which have an interest in its renewal;

- the Commission should also report to Parliament and Council on the results of the targeted actions described in the protocol.

Lastly, MEPs called on the Commission to submit a copy of the report on the evaluation study on 'deep-water crab' stocks scheduled for 2006, arguing that it was important to assess this stock and ascertain whether a fishing category can be reopened in São Tomé and Príncipe.