The European Commission has approved three French schemes worth €100 million in total, to support the fisheries sector affected by the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the EU and the consequent quota share reductions foreseen in the provisions of the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA).
These are the first support measures approved by the Commission in the context of inter-institutional discussions on the proposed Brexit Adjustment Reserve (‘BAR').
While the decisions do not prejudge whether the support measures will eventually be eligible for BAR funding, which will be assessed once the BAR Regulation will have entered into force, they already provide France with legal certainty that the Commission considers them compliant with EU State aid rules, irrespective of the ultimate source of funding.
The first scheme, with a total budget of €80 million, aims at partially compensating the fixed costs of the vessels forced to stay at berth due to the quota reductions envisaged in the TCA or to the lack of access to UK waters or other third country waters due to Brexit, as well as the remuneration of crewmembers.
It applies to the period 1 January 2021 to 30 June 2021, and may be extended until 31 December 2021. The public support will take the form of direct grants to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) active in France in the fisheries sector.
The amount of the estimated losses to be compensated will be calculated based on objective criteria, taking as reference the turnover for the year 2019 multiplied by the number of days when the ship remains at berth and a factor discounting costs not borne by beneficiaries during the period at berth, which will not be compensated. The scheme will be open for applications until 31 December 2022.
The second scheme, with a total budget of €12 million, aims at compensating part of the loss of revenues suffered by the French fishing fleet, from 1 January to 31 March 2021, in order to increase the resilience of the sector.
The loss of revenues is mainly due to quota reductions envisaged in the TCA, to lack of access to UK waters or other third country waters, or to negative impacts on trade patterns and logistics. The public support will take the form of direct grants to SMEs active in France in the fisheries sector. The scheme will be open until 31 December 2022.
The third scheme, with a budget of €8 million, aims at compensating part of the loss of revenues for the same reasons suffered by French fishmongers, from 1 January to 31 March 2021, in order to increase the resilience of the sector. The public support will take the form of direct grants to SMEs and large enterprises active in France in the wholesale and processing of fish, crustaceans and molluscs. The scheme will be open until 31 December 2022. ■
Under an intense surge of arctic air, Friday morning will begin with the coldest temperatures so far this season across much of the central and eastern U.S. with blustery conditions and a piercing wind chill.