THE sometimes controversial five year reign of EU Fisheries and Maritime Affairs Commissioner Joe Borg has ended -with him receiving a top fishing honour - this year's Kungsfenan Swedish Seafood Award in Gothenburg.
Mr Borg was awarded the prize for his vital work to put EU fisheries on a sustainable footing. While in Sweden, the former Commissioner will also be taking part in a number of seminars where he will speak about the work achieved at European level to promote the sustainability agenda in fisheries and maritime policy.
The news comes as it was announced that his successor Maria Damanaki of Greece has confirmed she will visit Scotland some time in the near future. She had been invited by Ian Hudghton.the SNP group leader in the European Parliament to take a first hand look at the Scottish fishing industry and its efforts in sustainability.
Mr Hudghton added: “Scotland has been at the forefront of European efforts to secure a sustainable future for our fisheries. The Scottish fleet, working in co-operation with the government in Edinburgh, has introduced a number of innovative programmes such as the conservation credits scheme."
Meanwhile the Swedish Seafood award panel praised Joe Borg for his ability to "handle short-term interests in relation to more long-term ones with great personal integrity" and has characterised his work as having "enormous potential to create a trustworthy, sustainable fishing policy".
Mr Borg will be donating his share of the prize money – the equivalent of around €10,000 – to Handicap International, an international NGO present in 60 countries
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