Response to interpellation 2024/25:236 on trials of protective hunting of seals and cormorants

Landsbygdsministern Peter Kullgren (KD)

Mr. Speaker! Kenneth G Forslund has asked me if I am prepared to give directives in the regulatory letters for 2025 to the Swedish Agency for Marine and Water Management and the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency to introduce a trial area in the 8-plus fjords area for protective hunting of seals and cormorants.

I want to begin by saying that the sea constitutes an indispensable resource that provides many benefits for humanity and society. The situation for the ecosystems in our seas is strained and serious, which is primarily manifested through poor stock status for important fish stocks and that the size distribution for several stocks is shifted towards small individuals. Management of habitats, of fish, and of predators such as seals and cormorants are closely linked.

The marine environment bill (prop. 2023/24:146) specifies the government's direction for marine environment policy, including how sustainable fisheries management as well as management of predators can be more strongly integrated into and interact with marine environment work.

The fish stocks in coastal areas need to be strengthened in the long term, not only in the 8plus fjordar area but along the whole of Sweden. The Government assesses that a holistic view is needed to create opportunities for the fish stocks to develop a natural stock structure with large individuals and stocks at sustainable levels. Both seals and cormorants can have a significant regulating effect on certain fish species, especially in coastal areas and in situations where the stocks of predatory fish are small. This applies primarily in the Baltic Sea, where the combined take of fish by seals and cormorants is assessed to be able to be in parity with or, in some cases, constitute a twice as large impact factor as fishing. Seals and cormorants also have a large impact on small-scale coastal fishing.

The management of fish and its predators such as seals and cormorants should be included in an ecosystem-based ocean management to satisfy all three dimensions of sustainability. In order to more easily achieve this, a number of measures need to be taken.

The EU ban on trade with seal products, which hinders the management of seals, needs to be removed. Seals must be able to be managed in the same way as other wildlife. The incentives for seal hunting need to be strengthened and the hunting expanded. Furthermore, international recommendations on seal management need to be adapted to the need for population-regulating hunting of seals. Sweden is working within the Helcom cooperation to ensure that a review of the current recommendation on the conservation of seals is carried out.

Sweden shall, in addition to this, work to ensure that general hunting of cormorants is introduced by pushing the issue of listing cormorants as a huntable species in the Birds Directive. The Government believes that the damage caused by cormorants needs to be reduced. Initiatives have been taken to highlight the need for general hunting of cormorants within the EU as well as for a downlisting of the cormorant's protection status.

The marine environment bill implies a new direction and new opportunities in the work with the management of marine predators such as seals and cormorants. The Government intends to take a number of measures aimed at protecting vulnerable fish stocks against these predators. Which measures will be included in the authorities' regulatory letters for 2025, I cannot go into yet. However, I expect that the pursued policy will have some impact in the practical management as early as next year.

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Kenneth G Forslund (S)

Mr. Speaker! I thank Minister for Rural Affairs Peter Kullgren for the answer.

I can say that this is not a major, party-politically divisive issue or any ideological abyss between us. On the contrary, I can say that the answer from the Minister for Rural Affairs hits on a number of points that are important for addressing these problems.

Among other things, the importance of removing the EU ban on trade with seal products is pointed out. This is naturally crucial for achieving a functioning hunt, because if it is to become a hunt, it must probably be paid for in some way. Either we will have to subsidize it through the state, or there needs to be a market for the products. The wisest way, naturally also from a resource perspective, is that there is a legal market for the products.

It is therefore excellent that work is being done to remove this ban. It is also good that the government is working to ensure that general hunting of cormorants can be introduced, because that is also needed.

That I am engaging in this issue is because I live in one of these five municipalities, namely in Kungälv. There, the project 8-plus fjordar has been run for a long time, and I see very clearly what the marine environment is like in my home region on the Bohus coast.

We have done a long series of things in recent years, both in this project and in other ways. We have replanted eelgrass on the seabed, we have constructed artificial reefs to create spawning and breeding environments, and we have reduced emissions from, for example, agriculture and industry. This has resulted in the aquatic environment being better now, and we see that much in the water has improved.

What is missing, however, are the big fish. They are not appearing in volume, we notice. It remains that other factors are influencing, and we have been able to see how the amount of seals and cormorants has increased very much for a time. It is clear that it is easy, at least, to believe that this is a factor that makes the big fish, despite everything, not return.

Since this is a project that has been ongoing for a long time, there is also a lot of data and a lot of knowledge. That makes this an excellent area to carry out such an experiment as I, in my interpellation, ask if the Minister for Rural Affairs is prepared to contribute to by giving instructions to these two agencies in the regulatory letters.

We are obviously in agreement on the overall direction of the policy and where we want to go. There is a good opportunity here to test and get clear evidence as to whether this works or not.

The Minister for Rural Affairs' response concludes: "Which measures will be included in the agencies' regulatory letters for 2025, I cannot yet go into." I can understand that. However, it could be interesting if the Minister for Rural Affairs can nevertheless say whether it is of any interest to him at all to consider such a trial opportunity, or if the Minister for Rural Affairs sees it as totally ruled out.

In conclusion, in this first entry, regarding the fact that people talk about the cormorant growth and point out that it primarily concerns the Baltic Sea, I want to say that even I myself thought along those lines for a long time. However, I have to some extent had to change my opinion after having been out and seen that there is a very large growth of cormorants. The problems with cormorants on the Bohus coast are much, much larger than I had realized and understood earlier.

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Patrik Björck (S)

Mr. Speaker! I requested the floor in this debate after I had heard the answer from the Minister for Rural Affairs and heard Kenneth G Forslund in his contribution state that he agrees with the Minister for Rural Affairs on the direction of the policy.

The Minister for Rural Affairs and I were also in agreement on the direction in the previous debate, which concerned the wolf issue – but nothing is happening! That is what is so worrying about the Minister for Rural Affairs. "Which measures will be included in the agencies' regulatory letters for 2025, I cannot yet go into," the Minister for Rural Affairs replied. On the other hand, according to the answer, he expects that the implemented policy will have a certain impact.

It is a very defensive and cautious stance. The Swedish countryside would benefit if the Minister for Rural Affairs could be a bit clearer and a bit more forceful, work a bit harder and push the issues a bit more. Then we would not only agree on the direction but perhaps even be satisfied with the result of the policy, because that is what is important.

But it is clear: If the wolf hunt only decreases and the scavenger hunt does not get started, and if the Minister for Rural Affairs is so cautious, so afraid of actions and has such weak capacity for action, we will not make any progress on any issues. Then we can be as much in agreement as we want regarding the directions, but there will be no results, Mr. Speaker! That worries me and people in the Swedish countryside.

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Landsbygdsministern Peter Kullgren (KD)

Mr. Speaker! I thank you for the contributions from the interpellor and the co-debater.

I also note, as has been said, that we share a common view on the direction. I also believe that we share a common view regarding what needs to be done so that we can achieve a more efficient management of sale and joint.

I want to say again that this is an area where we have a regulatory framework that we do not solely control nationally. Therefore, the efforts we make together with countries within the European Union are central. The most recent activity was an other business item precisely regarding these issues at the council meeting, or the ministerial meeting, some months ago. There we demonstrated that there is broad support among the member states and unanimously urged the Commission to address the issues of sales and margins.

Changes are needed for us to truly be able to make a difference. We have also, as was mentioned in the response, developed a marine environment bill and redirected the policy surrounding these issues. This is important, not least so that we can ensure a better stock structure for a good number of fish species.

I will not be able to say here today that this is something we are going to do, but of course we are considering many different alternatives in both fixed form and project form when it comes to finding ways to obtain evidence for how a different management of sale and spawning would affect the fish stocks. Many assignments are out, as I said, and I look forward to it having an effect as early as next year.

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Kenneth G Forslund (S)

Mr. Speaker! One can indeed agree with Patrik Björck that it tends to go a bit slowly. The problems with seal and grey seal have existed for a very long time here in the Baltic Sea area.

I can admit that we along the Bohus coast are a bit unfamiliar with cormorant problems in any case, but I still want to emphasize that there is knowledge and experience. There is also a delimited area with these 8-plus fjords. It is an excellent area to test what one can actually do, because this is not just about reducing the amount of seals and cormorants, but also about which methods are reasonable and possible to use.

So, there is an excellent opportunity here to take advantage of for a government that wants to move forward in this. I do not see this as a Social Democratic or Christian Democratic issue, but I see it as an important issue for Sweden. It is obvious that we agree on the direction, but we must get activity in it.

There is a good opportunity here.

I think it is positive when the Minister for Rural Affairs says that he is, of course, considering different alternatives. I hope that we can go a bit further than that, that it can be included in the regulatory letters that these agencies shall start trials with working on these issues in this delimited and very suitable area.

We will then be able to learn a lot from it. We will also be able to see if this has the effects we hope for - that big fish will return, that for example the cod will return along the Bohus coast. If it does not do so after these measures, we must, honestly, sit down and think very carefully about what problems it is that we have not understood and which have created this situation. Then we probably have a very serious situation.

I really want to appeal to the Minister for Rural Affairs: Consider this! Take the opportunity! There is an excellent area here to carry out such an experiment in.

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Landsbygdsministern Peter Kullgren (KD)

Mr. Speaker! Yes, there are many studies that point out that increased hunting of predators can have a fairly significant impact on fish stock recovery, but there are also difficulties that we need to overcome before we can have a proper stock-regulating hunt on seals and cormorants in all places where there is a need.

The Birds Directive and the regulation on the ban on trade in seal products complicate, as mentioned, these opportunities. We also have the intergovernmental recommendation in Helcom, which has a goal that the seal should achieve its ecological maximum without regard for the impact on its prey or that it entails starvation for the seals themselves. It really needs to be reviewed and reworked.

We are actively working on these issues, but it takes time and hard work to push through the constitutional amendments, not least in the international regulatory framework.

As mentioned before, the advocacy work is underway. It was in October that I took the initiative for this other issue, which was signed by Estonia, Latvia, and Finland together with Sweden. We received broad support - from many member countries, even large ones. What we requested there was that the Commission should develop a proposal so that the shrike becomes huntable in our four countries - by having it listed in Annex II part b of the Birds Directive.

It is truly alarming that the fish stocks in the areas mentioned in the interpellation are not recovering despite the long-standing fishing ban - this applies to both recreational and commercial fishing. It is extremely central for me and the government that we do what is required to save these vulnerable stocks. It also means that one must constantly try to find new measures.

For very many years, the measure to increase the hunting of predators has not been relevant in Sweden. I do not think we see it that way anymore - we also point this out clearly in the marine environment bill. It is clear that we must work with this.

I will return, and please do so, with more national measures to reduce the predation of both seals and cormorants.

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Kenneth G Forslund (S)

Mr. Speaker! I would like to thank you once again for the answers and the direction that the Minister for Rural Affairs points out. I truly wish success in this work, both in the Swedish work and in the EU work. I look forward to the pace being increased in this.

I hope that I have contributed to inspiring that we might perhaps have a test area on the west coast. I believe that there would be many benefits with that.

Above all, the long-term goal is, of course, that we should achieve balance in our seas, so that we can get back all the fish, not just certain fish. The water is better. The bottom environment is better. The spawning opportunities are better. All the conditions are there. It is simply a matter of finding the balance again, so that we can get back all the fish.

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Landsbygdsministern Peter Kullgren (KD)

Mr. Speaker! I would like to thank Kenneth G Forslund for a good debate and a good interpellation, which shows creative proposals to address the problems.

Without anticipating the ongoing preparations within the Government Offices, I can state that 2025 will be an interesting year to follow regarding the management of predators such as seals and cormorants.

The interpellations debate was hereby concluded.

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