The publication of a White Paper on Fisheries in Spain in 2005, based on a description of the current status of fisheries and the fishing industry as a whole, has fuelled debate between central government, the Autonomous Communities and all fishery-related sectors. With the active involvement of NGOs, the debate has centred on identifying and diagnosing failures and problems in the fishing sector.

All Spanish fishing vessels over 15 metres in length, together with all those operating in international waters or the waters of third countries, must carry on-board satellite monitoring systems. In 2005, the Fisheries Monitoring Centre, which reports to the General Secretariat for Sea Fishing, handled over 7 million position reports from 2 675 Spanish and 441 foreign vessels (in 2004 this was 5 057 423 position reports from 2 152 Spanish and 422 foreign vessels).