Report of the Workshop on cost benefit analysis of data collection in support of stock assessment and fishery management (WKCOSTBEN)

WKCOSTBEN was established by the ICES Planning Group on Data Needs for Assess-ments and Advice (PGDATA). The need for a cost benefit framework is highlighted in the ICES document on “Implementing the ICES strategic plan 2014–2018” (ICES, Au-gust 2014). The work plan for the meeting addressed the following tasks:• Establish what is meant by “cost–benefit framework for data collection”, and who it is designed for;• Identify scope of decisions about data collection and how they could be sup-ported by objective and transparent methods appropriate to the scale of the issue;• Develop some illustrative case studies around examples of regional data col-lection programmes (fisheries, surveys);• Map out a longer term programme for development and implementation of the framework.