The Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) is the fisheries policy of the European Union (EU). It sets quotas for which member states are allowed to catch what amounts of each type of fish, as well as encouraging the fishing industry by various market interventions. In 2004 it had a budget of €931 million, approximately 0.75% of the EU budget.
The common fisheries policy has been criticised by fishermen who say it is threatening their livelihoods, although some scientific research has shown that fishing stocks were in decline long before the policy came into being.
When it came into force, the Treaty of Lisbon formally enshrined fisheries conservation policy as one of the handful of 'exclusive competences' reserved for the European Union, to be decided by Qualified Majority Voting. However, general fisheries policy remains a "shared competence" of the Union and its member states. Thus decisions will still be made primarily by the council of ministers, as is the case now.
The common fisheries policy was created to manage fish stocks for the European Union as a whole. Article 38 of the 1957 Treaty of Rome, which created the European Communities (now European Union), stated that there should be a common policy for fisheries.
The CFP currently has four components:
Regulation of production, quality, grading, packaging and labeling
Encouraging producers organizations intended to protect fishermen from sudden market changes.
Setting minimum fish prices and financing buying up of unsold fish.
Set rules for trade with non-EU countries