For years, the EU cut fishing quotas for Baltic cod and herring, hoping to rebuild the stocks.

Omissions

• The most recent cycle is not a pure continuation of cuts: in October 2025 the Council, against scientific advice, actually increased the central Baltic herring quota by 15% relative to 2025, even though the Commission had proposed overall Baltic fishing opportunities for 2026 to be cut by 14.3%.
• Eastern Baltic cod has been effectively closed since 2020 (only by-catch allowed), so recent annual decisions mainly adjust the small by-catch TAC rather than 'cutting' a directed fishery.
• Sources include Commission proposals and press releases published before the session date (2025) as well as Council decisions from October 2025, all of which the MEP could have known.
• The claim is directional and historical ('for years'); no precise numeric values are asserted, so verification focuses on whether repeated quota cuts for these stocks occurred.

Sources

• PrimaryEuropean Commission — Press release IP/25/1987: Commission proposes fishing opportunities for 2026 in the Baltic SeaFor eastern Baltic cod, the Commission intends to keep a catch limit for unavoidable by-catches and all the accompanying measures which have already been in place since 2020, when the directed fishery was closed.
• PrimaryEuropean Commission — Q&A on fishing opportunities in the Baltic Sea (QANDA/25/1988)Why is the Commission decreasing the by-catch TAC for eastern Baltic cod for 2026? ... since 2020. Are the measures put in place since 2019 [being maintained]...
• PrimaryConsilium (Council of the EU) — Fishing opportunities in the EU: Baltic SeaOn 28 October 2025, the Council reached a political agreement on new limits on fish catches for the Baltic Sea's key fish stocks, namely herring, sprat, cod, ...
• SecondaryEuropean Interest — EU drastically cuts fishing quotas in the Baltic SeaFishing quota for cod will be almost completely cut off for next year, with the Western cod variant seeing a whopping 84% cut of tonnage and the ...
• SecondaryEuropêche — Small-scale fishermen lose out on Commission's proposed cuts to Baltic codThe quota proposed for Western Baltic cod amounts to 1588 tons, down 88% from 2016 figures and a reduction of almost 40% for the Eastern stock.
• SecondarySeas At Risk — Fisheries Ministers Risk Breaking EU Law, Jeopardising Baltic Sea RecoveryThe Council agreed to increase the central Baltic herring quota by 15% compared to 2025 levels, despite the stock being in poor condition and ...