The government was grossly misleading in its presentation of its marine environment proposal, which is intended to protect fish stocks. This is according to former Environment Minister Isabella Lövin (MP).
On Monday, Climate and Environment Minister Romina Pourmokhtari (L), Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson (M), and Agriculture Minister Peter Kullgren (KD) presented the new proposal at a press conference. The government said it is proposing a shift of the fishing boundary in the Baltic Sea from four to twelve nautical miles, as well as a ban on bottom trawling in protected areas such as national parks and nature reserves.
After the press conference, Isabella Lövin welcomed the proposal, but since reading it after its publication on Wednesday, she has changed her mind.
The proposal contains no sharp proposals, according to Lövin. She is now running for the European Parliament, where she has previously worked extensively on the issue. She has also written a book about the overexploitation of fish stocks in Swedish and foreign waters.
Instead, the government uses weaker formulations, stating that it "should" establish "permanent regulations" in the area regarding the fishing boundary, and "intends to move forward with proposals from another inquiry" where exemptions can also be given for the ban on bottom trawling in protected areas, according to Lövin.
Why do you think the government used stronger formulations at the press conference than in the proposal?
According to Romina Pourmokhtari, the preparatory work on moving the fishing boundary has already begun.
"The government is in agreement that the fishing boundary should be moved to cover the Swedish territorial waters in the Baltic Sea and the preparatory work on this has already begun. I hope the Riksdag will support the fishing boundary and the many other proposals in the marine environment proposal to put a stop to eutrophication and strengthen our fish stocks," she says in a written comment to TT.
