Discussion Held On Irish Fishing Issues

Written by Cian MacSweeny
Thursday, 19 June 2008
A discussion was held in Strasbourg yesterday between the EU Fisheries Commissioner, Mr. Joe Borg, the Irish Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Brendan Smith TD and the Minister of State with Special Responsibilities for Fisheries, Tony Killeen TD. The two Irish Ministers were there to speak about the difficulties being experienced by fishermen across Europe, but particularly in Ireland. This may have been the first time the Ministers and the Commissioner have met face to face but this meeting was actually a follow up to a lengthy telephone conversation recently between Minister Smith and the Commissioner. During the meeting the Irish Minister discussed the problems being faced by Irish fishermen and also the urgent need to bring forward an EU-funded package of measures to help alleviate the concerns of Irish fishermen. This meeting was set up after a discussion with the Federation of Irish Fishermen on Friday last where the Ministers promised to express these issues to Commissioner Borg. In the meeting with Commissioner Borg, Minister Smith also expressed his intentions to press, at next weeks Fisheries Council, for the adoption of new EU Regulations to cease the import of illegal, unregulated and unreported fish into the EU market which are weakening the markets for legally caught fish, as well as the early adoption of new conservation measures to reduce discards and juvenile fish protection measures in the seas around Ireland. Minister Killeen also made note to the Commissioner the priority that would have to be put on the Irish fishing fleet in any EU package and also made light of the issue of the requested adjustment of the Celtic Sea Cod TAC. In the course of the meeting, the Irish Ministers also spoke on the proposals outlined by the Commissioner which were published last Tuesday evening. Minister Smith and Minister Killeen noted how they welcomed Commissioner Borg's proposals, but highlighted the absence of a provision for additional EU funding to underwrite the proposals. The EU Fisheries Commissioner responded saying that he was currently in the process of an exercise within the DG Mare to look into all possibilities for the identification of some additional funding for the package. After the meeting, the two Ministers expressed their appreciation for the opportunity to once again press the case for EU assistance for Irish fishermen. Minister Brendan Smith said that the Commissioner was now fully informed on the issues of concern to Irish fishermen. Minister Killeen noted that since many of the issues outlined were also f concern to fishermen in other Member States, the Ministers would persist in pressing, with their colleagues at next week's Council of Fisheries Ministers in Luxembourg, for a package of measures and additional EU-funding which would be needed to address the problems being faced by fishermen across the EU and particularly in Ireland. Once all of the problems facing the industry have been discussed at next weeks Council, Commissioner Joe Borg will announce a definitive set of proposals to be presented to the Fisheries Council of 15 July.

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