Mr. Michael Keatinge:

There will always be this relentless pursuit of competitiveness, not driven by BIM but driven by market forces. It is our job to help industry adapt to that but I do think that working with the industry closely, by encouraging foreign landings and looking at new opportunities Killybegs has weathered the storm of change and has come out a strong and vibrant port. It is the envy of many other fishing countries and I think it will remain so. In the whitefish sector, a significant investment in the new piers has been made in Castletownbere and there is a successful whitefish fleet operating out of there. A large investment has also been made to upgrade the port facility in Rossaveal. It has its problems. We see a problem even with the prawn stock in the traditional grounds west of the Aran Islands. They are the things we must grapple with, but overall I would have to put it to the members that we are coming through these changing times and we are evolving an industry that is capable of competing with the very best.

One very important point was made by the Deputy on Ireland's unique position and our ability to present a green, organic, healthy, quality image for seafood and the wider food sector. We commend the work being done by Bord Bia to develop the Origin Green initiative. We fully participate in that. We have developed quality assurance schemes that complement what Bord Bia does for the farming sector. One can now get an ISO-65 standard operating in Ireland if one is producing anything from lobster to mackerel. There are opportunities. I will invite Mr. Maguire to reflect on the Clare Island experience in terms of protected geographic indicators, PGI.