Michael Collins (Cork South West, Independent)
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I welcome our witnesses. I have a good number of questions and I hope I can get answers to all or most of them. If not, I might get the replies in writing afterwards.

In particular, the weighing crisis is a massive issue. I presume every coastal Deputy is inundated with calls from concerned fishermen. Many of them are very close to the brink and are seriously worried about their future. I have been asked to issue a request through the Oireachtas committee, although it might be difficult in this pandemic time, for us to be able to visit processing plants with representatives of the EU, the SFPA, the Department and so on to let everyone have their say. The exact same thing is suggested for whitefish, shellfish, lobster, shrimp and crab and it would be good for them to visit co-ops in west Cork at Baltimore, Union Hall, Schull, Turk Head and Colla Pier.

I have the following questions and the witnesses might be able to take them down and answer as many as they can. Does the SFPA accept that the mismanagement of this entire debacle is adding to anti-European sentiment in our country? At face value, it was an act of madness to throw the fisheries industry into turmoil within one hour. On 16 April, at 4 p.m., everything was normal, but at 5 p.m., nothing was normal and a new regime was in place. Do the witnesses think this is acceptable behaviour from a regulatory body? Has the SFPA seriously looked at how this new regime of weighing on piers is going to impact on our two main ports, Killybegs and Castletownbere, as well as the small ports in west Cork, especially for landings during the pelagic season, when a daily landing of 5,000 to 6,000 tonnes of fish is common? It takes numerous factories weighing on their own plant or in-factory devices eight to nine hours a day to clear those fish.

How is the SFPA going to manage putting all landings to all plants through pier weighing when no facilities exist for that scale of throughput? Do the witnesses accept this could lead to a serious amount of landings going elsewhere, for example, to Norway, the Shetlands or elsewhere in Scotland? I am not just talking about Irish vessels but other EU vessels refusing to come to our ports due to the present uncertainty. This will result in serious loss to the Irish economy. Do the witnesses think this is acceptable? Is the SFPA committed to restoring in-factory weighing?

Will the witnesses assure us today it is a real possibility, that it is part of the programme for Government and the Government is committed to it? Is weighing a policy matter or solely an operational matter at this juncture?

Control and quality monitoring must be separated from the SFPA. The events since 16 April have proven the SFPA cannot do both with fairness, as quality is secondary to control in the eyes of the SFPA. That is despite articles stating both must be done with equal priority. It is crazy what the officers are asking fishers to do at the pier, and this will get worse after 1 June unless somebody calls this out.

What information did the SFPA give to the EU about the system? Why did it accept EU audit findings? To whom did the SFPA speak prior to responding to the audit report? Did it include fishermen, port officers or SFPA protection officers on the ground? What measures have been put in place to limit the damage and alleviate the hardship arising from draconian measures and the withdrawal of weighing in factories on the fishing industry?

Is it true that for years prior to this happening, the fishing industry has been imploring both the SFPA and the Department to implement a code of practice governing how SFPA fisheries protection officers should interact with the industry and discharge statutory responsibilities not just in the area of enforcement but, just as significantly, in the area of certification of Irish fisheries produce in the context of health and hygiene and the provisions of safe and healthy fisheries product that is fit for human consumption.