The president of the Generalitat Valenciana, Carlos Mazonhas gone out to rescue of the fishing sector in this region – one of the most affected by the restrictions imposed by the EU – with an injection of 2.8 million euros to finance network changes and flying doors. He has also demanded state involvement to help those affected.
He is thus positioned among the first to compensate for these cuts in activity, as he stated this Saturday in Alicante, after the meeting he held with the Minister of Agriculture, Water, Livestock and Fisheries, Miguel Barrachinawith representatives of the brotherhoods of fishermen from Alicante, Castellón and Valencia, as indicated by the Generalitat in a statement.
Mazón has advanced the implementation of a line of funds to finance 100% in the case of the networks of all the boats of the Valencian Community “harmed by the European Union agreement that reduces fishing days” and has highlighted that can be requested starting next Monday.
“This line of direct aid will be enabled immediately so that, before May, the date imposed in the agreement to increase the fishing days authorized by Europe,” he highlighted, while adding that the increase is conditional on compliance with a series of requirements such as the size of the networks, the type of gates or the implementation of selective closures.
For this, Mazón has specified, “they will be allocated 12,500 euros on average per boat so that they acquire at least four new nets with the measurements established by the European agreement”, that is, 45 millimeters, in the case of coastal fishing, and 50 millimeters, in the case of deep fishing.
The highest representative of the Valencian Government has also assured that they are being finalized other measures of support to the fishing sector to “support them after the conditions imposed and be able to increase, even more, the days of fishing, subsidizing, with the highest possible percentage, the change of the flying doors.”
Mazón and Barrachina, in their meeting with the fishermen’s guilds in Alicante, Valencia and Castellón
In this sense, he has highlighted the “immediate reaction of the Generalitat, which will not allow this situation of harassment to continue”, in the face of, in his opinion, “incomprehensible decisions taken by the European Union, with the silence of the “Government that puts at risk a key productive sector that supports thousands of families in the Valencian Community.”
In this regard, he has pointed out that the economic repercussions are not limited only to fishing vessels, but he has pointed out that they also affect the brotherhoodsthe marketsthe wholesalers of fish, fishmongers and a large number of companies that depends on this activity, such as naval mechanics, netters, caulkers and shipyards, as well as hospitality and tourism.
Avoid “decommissioning”
At the same time, he has demanded that the Government of Spain “repair the lack of influence and inefficiency demonstrated in the negotiation in the European Union” and has demanded state support in order to avoid its “dismantling.”
Likewise, he regretted that, in recent years, “with the current Government of Spain, fishing has gone from 200 days to just 30” with the current EU agreement and with “more restrictions on our boats”, while other competitors of the Mediterranean have duplicated or triplicate his fleet fishery.
Finally, he indicated that the Consell has adopted measures such as elimination of the rates of the Generalitat to fishing boats in the ports of the Community so that “as of next January 1, 2025, no fishing boat will pay these fees”, or the creation of a general directorate of Fisheries.
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