PECH Committee keen to empower EC on fish import ban

The European Commission may receive the power to ban EU imports of fish from overfished stocks and related species, after the EP Fisheries (PECH) Committee endorsed a new deal to this effect. The agreement still needs to be endorsed by Parliament as a whole  in september and the Council soon after.
According to the European Parliament press service, MEPs insisted in the negotiations that to ensure the long-term sustainability of fish stocks of common interest to the EU and third countries, the EU should take a hard line on third countries that fail to live up to their responsibilities.
The rapporteur and head of the Parliament's negotiating team Pat the Cope Gallagher, aid accordingly: "I strongly believe that the agreed text will deliver both workable and effective trade sanctions, which will act as a real deterrent to countries who engage in unsustainable fishing practices now and in the future".  

Source: European Parliament