THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,
Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and in particular Article 349 thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission,
After transmission of the draft legislative act to the national parliaments,
Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament,
Having regard to the opinion of European Economic and Social Committee,
After consulting the Committee of the Regions,
Acting in accordance with a special legislative procedure,
Whereas:
(1)
By European Council Decision 2012/419/EU, the European Council decided to amend the status of Mayotte with regard to the Union with effect from 1 January 2014. From that date, Mayotte will cease to be an overseas country or territory and will become an outermost region of the Union within the meaning of Article 349 and Article 355(1) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU). Following this amendment of the legal status of Mayotte, Union law will apply to Mayotte from 1 January 2014. Taking account of the particular structural social and economic situation of Mayotte, which is compounded by its remoteness, insularity, small size, difficult topography and climate, certain specific measures should be provided for in a number of areas.
(2)
In the field of fisheries and animal health, the following Regulations should be amended.
(3)
As regards Council Regulation (EC) No 850/98, the waters around Mayotte, as a new outermost region, should be included within the scope of that Regulation and the use of purse-seines on tuna and tuna-like schools of fish inside the area within 24 miles from the baselines of the island should be prohibited, in order to preserve the shoals of large migratory fish in the vicinity of the island of Mayotte.
(4)
As regards Regulation (EU) No 1379/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council, in view of the very fragmented and under-developed marketing schemes of Mayotte, the application of the rules on the labelling of fishery products would impose on retailers a burden disproportionate to the information that would be transmitted to the consumer. It is therefore appropriate to provide for a temporary derogation from the rules concerning the labelling of fishery products offered for retail sale to the final consumer in Mayotte.
(5)
As regards Regulation (EU) No 1380/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council, specific measures should be introduced with respect to fishing capacity and the fleet register.
(6)
An important part of the fleet flying the flag of France and operating from the French Department of Mayotte is composed of vessels of less than 10 metres which are dispersed around the island, have no specific landing sites and still need to be identified, measured and equipped with minimum safety equipment in order to be included in the register of Union fishing vessels. As a consequence, France will not be able to complete this register until 31 December 2021. France should, however, keep a provisional fleet register guaranteeing minimum identification of the vessels of this segment, in order to avoid the proliferation of informal fishing vessels.
(7)
In view of the fact that France has presented to the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC) a development plan describing the indicative size of the fleet of Mayotte and the expected evolution of the underdeveloped fleet of mechanical long-liners which are less than 23 metres in length and of purse-seiners based in Mayotte, as a new outermost region, to which no IOTC contracting party, including the Union, has objected, it is appropriate to use the reference levels of that plan as ceilings for the capacity of the fleet of mechanical long-liners which are less than 23 metres in length and of purse-seiners registered in the ports of Mayotte. By way of derogation from the generally applicable Union rules, and due to the currentspecific social and economic situation of Mayotte, sufficient time should be provided to allow France to increase the capacities of the underdeveloped segment of its fleet of smaller vessels until 2025.
(8)
As regards Regulation (EC) No 1069/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council, it should be noted that Mayotte has no industrial capacity for the processing of animal by-products. It is therefore appropriate to allow France a period of five years in order to establish the infrastructure necessary for the identification, handling, transport, treatment and disposal of animal by-products in Mayotte in full compliance with Regulation (EC) No 1069/2009.
(9)
As regards Council Regulation (EC) No 1224/2009, it appears that France will not be in a position to comply with all Union control obligations for the segment "Mayotte. Pelagic and demersal species. Length < 10 m" of the fleet of Mayotte by the date on which Mayotte will become an outermost region. The vessels of that segment, dispersed around the island, have no specific landing sites and still need to be identified. In addition, it is necessary to train fishermen and controllers and to set up the appropriate administrative and physical infrastructure. It is therefore necessary to provide for a temporary derogation from certain rules concerning the control of fishing vessels and their characteristics, their activities at sea, their gear and their catches at all stages from the vessel to the market in respect of that segment of the fleet. However, in order to attain at least some of the most important objectives of Regulation (EC) No 1224/2009, France should establish a national control system allowing it to control and monitor the activities of that segment of the fleet and to comply with the international reporting obligations of the Union.
(10)
Regulations (EC) No 850/98, (EC) No 1069/2009, (EC) No 1224/2009, (EU) No 1379/2013 and (EU) No 1380/2013 should therefore be amended accordingly,
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: