EU Commissioner: Common Maritime Policy is Critical

EU Commissioner Joe Borg said that Europe's maritime economy is of critical importance and therefore it is important to embrace a common maritime policy that will eventually allow Europe retaining its wealth and quality of life in the future. Borg was speaking at conference organized by the Malta Economic Update together with the Maritime Law Advisory Council. During his speech, Borg was hinting at the Green Paper issued by the European Commission responsible for Fisheries and Maritime Affairs entitled "Towards a future Maritime Policy for the Union: A European vision for the oceans and seas".

Commissioner Borg pointed out that the enlargement of the EU to 25 members has not only strengthened Europe politically and economically but has also increased the length of the EU coastline and maritime areas under EU's jurisdiction. He referred to recent research presenting an ageing population in the EU through the declining of birth rates and the rising of life expectancies. He said that this factor is posing a productivity challenge on Europe and there will be a sharply increasing dependency ratio, with the proportion of people over 65 rising from 16.4 per cent in 2004 to 29.9 percent in 2050. Borg also spoke about the fundamental principles upon which the EU is proposing to build an EU maritime policy. When speaking on the environment, he outlined the main problems that Europe is facing, namely, intense marine pollution, the depletion of marine biodiversity, the destruction of wetlands and the extreme weather events caused by climate change. Source: Di-ive News