MPs will today risk the ire of sustainable fishing campaigners by questioning the EU's plans for banning the controversial practice of discarding by 2014, arguing that any bans should be phased in and more focus should be given to encouraging selective fishing methods.

A new report from the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (EFRA) Committee examining the EU's proposals for reforming the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) urges the government to secure more powers for member states and make the case for a more measured approach to discard bans.

The European Commission put forward proposals last summer for fundamental reforms to the CFP, following a high profile campaign that highlighted how the current quota system had resulted in millions of tonnes of usable fish being discarded by fishermen each year.

The campaign, dubbed Fish Fight, called for an end to discards and prompted supermarkets to step up efforts to source more sustainably certified fish. It also contributed to a new set of proposals from the European Commission, currently being considered by the European Parliament and member states, which call for significant changes to the quota system and a ban on discarding many commercial species from 2014.

However, EFRA Committee Chair Anne McIntosh said MPs had concerns about the effectiveness of a straight ban on discards.

'Everyone is appalled by revelations about the levels of discarding,' she said. 'The Commission is right to want to tackle this, but we are concerned that a knee-jerk reaction to the public outcry will do more harm than good. The last thing that we want to see is unwanted fish in the sea becoming unwanted fish in landfill.'

The report argues more time is needed to build up the 'science base' underpinning any discards ban and argues any reforms should improve efforts to 'encourage more selective fishing methods' that avoid the need for discards.

It also urges the government to help boost demand for less popular species of fish, including through changes to procurement policies in public sector canteens.

In addition, the report argues that the government needs to step up pressure on the EU to hand more control over fishing policy to individual member states.

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