The Minister of Agriculture said today that state support to those fishermen who decide against putting out to sea because of the sardine fishing ban are set at the maximum level allowed by EU regulations.
The sardine ban has been put in place due to dwindling stocks which need to be preserved to breed and produce more sardines for next year.
Fishing boats may still leave harbour to fish for other species not covered by the ban, or choose to stay in port with fishermen able to collect between €20 and €27 each per day of inactivity.
Minister Assunçao Cristas said today that "These amounts are the maximum we can give according to EU regulations.”
The fishermen on the west coast as well as the Algarve are against the ban as, unsurprisingly, the price per kilo is high as the sardine is scarce.
Cristas added that the government’s concern is to ensure that anyone who believes it is better to stop fishing can get compensation.
"The daily amounts depend on the category of the people involved, and are set at the same level as last year."
"Our concern was to ensure from the outset that there is no failure in fishermen’s income and that they are always supported.”
Last year when also there was a sardine fishing ban, only 50% of vessels chose to stay in port and Cristas said that "Our focus is to ensure that the sardine does not disappear from Portugal, that we continue to have sardines in the coming years and that we can create conditions for the stock to recover as it currently is at risk."
Cristas stressed that she can not deviate from the goal of "regaining the stock of sardines in Portugal, because the situation is indeed very serious and dramatic."
