Small-scale fishers revealed as least supported recipients of EU funds - Reports show past EU funding did not support the most vulnerable parts of the fisheries sector

In 2021, ClientEarth introduced an access to information request to the European Commission to better understand how EU funding is distributed in the fisheries sector and, with the aim of having clear data concerning what parts of the EU fishing fleet benefit most from public support.

ClientEarth analysed the following documents:

• FAME Implementation report on the EMFF for 2019 drafted by Executive Agency for Small and Medium Enterprises (EASME).
• European Fisheries Fund (EFF) ex-post evaluation covering funds allocated between 2007 and 2013.
• EMFF 2019 implementation reports of France, Ireland, Spain, Italy and The Netherlands.
• Power Point Presentation PECH/9/01347 of the European Commission to the PECH committee of the European Parliament delivered in October 2020.

These documents display that 80% of the funds are granted to large scale fishers despite Small scale coastal fishers (SSCFs) representing 80% of the EU fleet. Information on how the money is spent is not very precise when it is comes to show how SSCFs are specifically supported. It seems that over decades national administrations have not been able to make this money easily accessible to the most vulnerable part of the sector.