Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senator. As I said previously, the most straightforward way to ensure there was equitable burden sharing was in regard to the deal itself. Of course, we were pushing at all stages for there not to be any move or any fish lost, but if there was to be fish lost or reallocated from the EU fleet to the UK fleet, we wanted that done in a way that spread the pain and the burden across member states. We knew the challenge in that we are the member state that shares the most species with the UK and, given our proximity, the species that are really important to us are really important to them. That was always a big challenge from our point of view and why, right through the negotiations, we pushed that principle of burden sharing.

Unfortunately, the outcome of the agreement does not reflect that and does put more of a burden on Ireland, and it is an issue that I, with European colleagues, will be looking to have addressed. That will undoubtedly be challenging because every member state is massively protective of its fish share, and fish is equally important to fishermen everywhere. However, there is a reality in terms of the fact Brexit has disproportionately impacted our fisheries sector in particular, along with other parts of our economy.

In terms of constructive solutions at European level, I will explore different options, including the Hague principles, to see how that might be addressed. I do not for one second underestimate the challenges but we all have to, and I certainly will, push to make it very clear that the outcome is unfair to us and needs to be addressed.