THE UK's Green MEPs, Keith Taylor and Jean Lambert, have welcomed a vote by the European Parliament which supports proposed legislation to ban the cruel practice of shark finning.
A 2003 EU law established a ban, but it was possible for fishermen to get around this by applying for special permits which allowed them to continue to remove the fins if they kept the bodies onboard their boats, rather then throwing them overboard.
However, given that such processing takes place on board vessels and fins and bodies can be landed in different ports, control and enforcement of the law was extremely difficult. Shark bodies were discarded overboard to make more storage space for the more valuable fins. The animal is often still alive after its fin has been removed and drowns when thrown back into the sea. The Greens in the European Parliament have long supported the outlawing of this odious fishing practice and the parliament today called for this existing loophole to be closed.
Speaking after the vote, Keith Taylor MEP said:”An unequivocal EU ban on the odious and wasteful practice of shark finning will finally become reality after this vote. MEPs have voted to prohibit the removal of shark’s fins on board, making it mandatory to land sharks with the fins naturally attached. This will allow the EU ban to finally be implemented without exceptions. Despite EU legislation on shark finning existing since 2003, loopholes enabled this barbaric and wasteful practice to continue. Thankfully a majority of MEPs have now voted for an outright ban and rejected attempts to preserve these loopholes.
Jean Lambert MEP said: “Every year millions of sharks are caught, their fins hacked off and the bodies simply discarded to meet the demand for shark fin soup, an expensive delicacy. This is not only a senseless waste, it also puts pressure on threatened shark species. Banning shark finning in European fisheries is an important step, but the EU should also advocate for the practice to be outlawed at international level.”
Greens support groups such as Shark Alliance which are calling for domestic and international catch limits to fully address the overexploitation of sharks.