| Summary: | The Northeast Arctic haddock stock is in good condition. Since 1950 the stock has shown large fluctuations in abundance, and the stock is now at the same level as the peaks in the mid 50s and the beginning of the 70s and 90s. The abundance of young haddock is currently high, and the prospect for the stock is good if it is managed within the agreed regulations. A significant problem is that haddock transshipped at sea is underreported, which has been documented in recent years. The underreported landings of haddock were estimated for the years 2002–2005 to be 22–35 % of the reported landings. In addition, haddock is discarded at sea, but the amount is unknown. An unknown total catch is worrying and is one of the causes for the uncertainty in the assessment of haddock. We therefore know too little to provide prognoses for 2007. Despite the uncertainty, we are able to track the trend in the stock. The advice for 2007 is that the total catch should not exceed 130 000 tonnes.
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