Michael Collins (Cork South West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister and his officials for appearing before the committee. I have a number of questions. The Minister may not be able to answer them all in the time we have allocated, but he might come back to me in writing.

This is another blow for the fishermen and fisherwomen in this country. It could not come at a worse time, regardless of when it should have been implemented. The statutory instrument, SI 318/2020, is linked to this Bill. It was signed into law by the Taoiseach in August 2020. That was a grotesque and deeply damaging act by the Taoiseach, who was the then caretaker Minister for Agriculture, Food and Marine. What is worse was that it occurred without any consultation with the fisheries sector. Does the Minister believe it was handled well?

The Minister's first meeting with the fisheries sector via Webex was on 16 September 2020. Representatives of the sector raised their deep concern over the introduction of SI 318/2020 at that meeting. Why did the Minister not listen to the representatives of the sector that day, rescind the statutory instrument and go back to the drawing board, including the sectoral viewpoints, in redrafting a more appropriate statutory instrument?

Why did the Minister vote against the same statutory instrument in 2018 when his Dáil colleague from Donegal, Pat The Cope Gallagher, brought a rescinding motion before the Dáil? What changed between the summer of 2018 and 2020? The statutory instrument did not change. Was it that the opportunity for power changed the Minister's mind and blinkered where his loyalties lay? It appears to me and to many fishermen and fisherwomen, including many in his county, that he is doing one thing in opposition and another thing when in power. Has the Minister consulted with the man who proposed having the original statutory instrument rescinded, namely, the former Deputy, Pat The Cope Gallagher, for advice and guidance? Surely that should have been his starting point given that he had been advocating for the industry back in 2018 on this very issue.

Why is the burden of proof, under SI 318/2020 and this Bill, on the balance of probabilities and not, as required in criminal cases, beyond a reasonable doubt? Why is the Minister degrading the civil liberties of fishermen and fisherwomen in this way? Why do the statutory instrument and the Bill not allow fishermen and fisherwomen a right to appeal a sanction arrived at on the basis of balance of probabilities? It makes no sense and undermines the civil and human rights of the entire fishing sector. Would the Minister not agree that this is dictatorship territory?

Why is the statutory instrument, introduced by the Taoiseach and then acting Minister for Agriculture, Food and Marine, forcing the fishing licence holders to retain the penalty points on their licences even if their cases are cleared in court? Does the Minister believe this is fair and just in a liberal democracy? It is no longer that our courts are the highest law of the land. If a fisherman gets points under this administration scheme, they cannot be removed by any court.

I plead with the Minister, even at this stage, to see common sense and stop being influenced by the bureaucrats in Brussels. He should rescind SI 318/2020, go back to the drawing board and give the fisheries sector an input into the penalty points system.