Mr. Enda Conneely:

I will make a few brief points. From our perspective, we have been recognised as a producer organisation but there is no funding available, in line with EU policy. We are short of basic infrastructure. The small-scale fleet is the basis of everything. Everyone starts off fishing on small boats on the coast and look at the state of us here; we are getting old. We need a practical system of facilitating generational renewal, such as a fishery apprentice scheme or something like that. A more nuanced scientific approach is where advice is presented and acted on. The pollock closure had a terrible effect on the small-scale fleet. The UK handled it differently from how we did. Most of our small-scale guys have been wiped out or severely impacted. The Island Fisheries (Heritage Licence) Bill 2017 was developed from a recommendation of the Oireachtas committee in 2014. It facilitated the introduction of many of these practical measures for the base of everything. It is interesting that at the UN Ocean Conference, Ursula von der Leyen said that fishermen, especially small-scale fisheries, should be prioritised and that the Commission is going to work with member states to ensure fair and transparent access to fishing opportunities and to make it easier to renew the small-scale fleet.

I agree with most of the things that have been said by my colleagues. We need to revisit the Common Fisheries Policy because we are stuck in a time warp and that needs to change.