On December Friday the 2nd, the European Community made public its proposal for the New Fund for Fisheries in the Maritime Policy for the period 2014-2020. This proposal did not include the subsidy to the cease of life of vessels.

The EC wanted to stress that despite the money that had been invested since the 90's, it had not been able to reduce the overcapacity of the fleet, since in many cases, although the money had been earmarked for dismantling and decommissioning of ships, the final destination of the aid was aimed at ending the life of the ships, and not reducing the overcapacity. That is why this money will fund from now on "activities that are productive from a economic and social standpoint."

This announcement has sparked more controversy than expected. Cepesca Secretary General (Spanish Fisheries Confederation), Javier Garat, issued a statement in which he described as "preposterous" the EC proposal and believes that this policy is in conflict with proper resources management.

Several environmental organizations have also expressed their discontent. On the one hand Greenpeace regrets this decision by the European community and recommends that "the new community fund should allocate more resources to monitoring compliance with European standards, the scientific studies and the transition to sustainable fisheries."

Moreover, the coalition of environmental organizations OCEAN2012 claims that "any future grant should help to get a marine environment in good health and a transition to sustainable fisheries."