Mr. Micheál O'Mahony:

There was a recurring theme of querying the detail that would be applied in these provisions. Detail was sought on why there is a period of three years, why certain obstructions are included and why the three-year clock suddenly gets reset when there is a new serious infringement. The answer to all of these questions is that this is what is laid out in the EU regulation; there is no discretion whatsoever given to us. I can read out the relevant parts of the regulations. On the three-year period, it is stated, “If the holder of a fishing licence does not commit, within three years from the date of the last serious infringement, another serious infringement, all points on the fishing licence shall be deleted.” Therefore, the three-year clock results in a complete reset, regardless of the-----