Jackie Cahill (Tipperary, Fianna Fail)
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I welcome the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputy McConalogue, and his officials: Dr. Cecil Beamish, assistant Secretary General; Ms Josephine Kelly, principal officer, sea-fisheries policy and management division; Dominic Rihan, director of economic and strategic services at Bord Iascaigh Mhara, BIM; and Dr. Ciaran Kelly, director of fisheries and ecosystems advisory services, FEAS, at the Marine Institute. All are joining from a witness room and are welcome to the meeting. The Minister will have ten minutes to make an opening statement and then we will move to questions and answers.

Before we begin, I must give an important note on parliamentary privilege. Witnesses are protected by absolute privilege in respect of the evidence they are to give to the committee. However, if they are directed by the committee to cease giving evidence on a particular matter and they continue to do so, they are entitled thereafter only to qualified privilege in respect of their evidence. They are directed that only evidence connected to the subject matter of these proceedings is to be given. They are asked to respect the parliamentary practice to the effect that, where possible, they should not criticise or make charges against any person, persons or entity by name or in such a way as to make him, her or it identifiable.

I call on the Minister to make his opening statement and ask him to keep it to ten minutes.

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Chairman and wish members a good evening. I welcome this opportunity to present this sustainability impact assessment, SIA, to the committee. As in previous years, a rigorous assessment has been undertaken to examine the implications for Ireland of the potential fishing opportunities for the coming year. These last few years have been particularly challenging for our fishing industry. In addition to the continuing disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, our industry has had to contend with the impacts of the UK’s withdrawal from the European Union and the quota transfers as a result of that under the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement, TCA. I can assure this committee that I, as Minister, and this Government, continue to keep the focus on the disproportionate quota reductions for Ireland under the TCA and to use any opportunity available to seek constructive solutions that would help alleviate this unacceptable position. I am keeping a strong focus on the matter within the Fisheries Council and making clear that the TCA transfers must be addressed within the EU and must be dealt with in the upcoming review of the Common Fisheries Policy, CFP.

Last week, the Taoiseach wrote to the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, on the issue of the inequitable burden on Ireland in terms of quota transfer under the TCA and to her and the Commission reiterate the Government’s call to find practical ways within the EU to address this issue. In addition to the impacts on industry, the UK’s withdrawal from the EU has also led to changes in the EU’s process of setting total allowable catches, TACs, for the majority of our commercial stocks. Approximately 40 of Ireland’s fish stocks, which were previously exclusively EU resources, are now shared resources, with most obviously being shared with the UK.

The Commission has the sole competence to negotiate with third countries, which the UK now is, on behalf of the EU on the setting of fishing opportunities for shared stocks. The bilateral negotiations between the Commission, on behalf of the EU, and the UK began on 11 November.I will go into more detail on these consultations later.

The European Commission published its proposal on 2022 fishing opportunities on 4 November. However, the stocks which the EU shares with the UK were presented in the proposal as pro memoria, that is, pending the timing and outcome of negotiations with the UK. This means that for the majority of stocks of interest to Ireland, the Commission did not set down total allowable catch levels in its formal proposal. To ensure the sustainability impact assessment could go ahead this year, I decided to again use the ICES scientific advice as the basis for this year's sustainability impact assessment. The ICES advice forms the basis of the scientific advice used by the Commission. Therefore, the ICES advice for the relevant stocks provides suitable guidance for the TAC figures which would normally be proposed by the Commission.This allowed for a meaningful public consultation and realistic engagement with our stakeholders. It also allowed the Marine Institute and Bord Iascaigh Mhara, BIM, to produce the biological and socio-economic assessments.Based on the experience of this first year post-Brexit and the changes this has led to in the process of setting fishing opportunities for the EU, I have asked my officials to review the SIA process and to propose adjustments to the timing and procedures for next year. I want the processes of the SIA to continue to provide a meaningful and effective contribution to how Ireland prepares for negotiations on fishing opportunities.

Ireland’s total allocation of quotas in 2021 amounted to a total value of approximately €229 million. This figure does not include very valuable inshore species which are not subject to total allowable catches and are fished by the Irish fleet in our inshore waters. These include stocks such as crab, whelk, scallop and lobster. The waters surrounding Ireland contain some of the most productive fishing grounds in the EU. We have a duty of care to protect their biological richness and, as such, they must be managed responsibly and sustainably. The landing obligation, which aims to eliminate the wasteful and unsustainable practice of discarding, has been fully implemented since 2019. The practical application of the landing obligation has been challenging for operators, requiring changes in fishing practices and behaviour. However, my Department, with BIM, continues to work with fishers to adapt and develop the most selective and sustainable fishing methods. The efforts of our fishers in this matter must be recognised.

Another key feature of the Common Fisheries Policy is the setting of total allowable catches and quotas to deliver maximum sustainable yield. Fishing at maximum sustainable yield, FMSY, is the largest average catch or yield that can be continuously taken from a stock under existing environmental conditions. For 2021, 35 stocks of interest to Ireland are fished below maximum sustainable yield. In 2013, this number was only 20. The number of stocks over fished has also declined to 11 in 2021 from highs of 22 in previous years. This is a significant achievement and Ireland will continue to work with stakeholders, the Commission, other member states and third countries to build on this tangible progress to achieve our objectives of healthy fish stocks and sustainable fishing.

As I mentioned earlier, the bilateral consultations with the UK for 2022 for shared stocks began on 11 November and are ongoing. I am fully engaged in this process and Ireland’s position and our concerns are inputted through the co-ordination meetings with the Commission organised through the Council Working Party.We are hopeful that agreement can be reached in the next day or so, which will allow the outcome to be discussed at the Council on 12 and 13 December and feed into the TAC and quota regulation for 2022. However, if this is not possible, there is a contingency plan in place. Under the Trade and Co-operation Agreement, in the event that agreement with the UK cannot be reached by 20 December, the Trade and Co-operation Agreement provides for each party to set provisional TACs applying from 1 January at the level advised by ICES, which is the scientific level.

This week, the Commission published its plan for provisional TACs for the first three months of 2022. This would see TACs for most stocks set at 25% of their 2021 TAC level, with the full 2022 TAC applied for coastal state stocks such as mackerel and blue whiting. While that situation would not be ideal, if needed, it provides certainty and continuity for our fishing industry into the new year.

Management arrangements for three migratory species in the north-east Atlantic in which Ireland has an interest, namely, blue whiting, Atlanto-Scandian herring and mackerel, are negotiated by means of a coastal states framework between the parties in whose waters significant concentrations of these stocks are to be found and which have normally had a track record in those three fisheries.

The coastal states negotiations for 2022 commenced in October and were conducted mainly by video conference. Agreement was reached on setting the TACs for blue whiting at 752,000 tonnes, for Atlanto-Scandian herring at 598,000 tonnes and for mackerel at 794,000 tonnes. The TAC for blue whiting is based on the advice from the International Council for the Exploration of the Seas, ICES, and is in line with the long-term management strategy for the stock. This represents a cut of 19% in the TAC. The TAC for mackerel is in line with the ICES advice based on the maximum sustainable yield approach and represents a reduction of 7% compared with the 2021 TAC.

The 2014 sharing arrangement for mackerel between the EU, Norway and the Faroe Islands expired at the end of 2020. All the coastal state parties recognised the need to reach an agreement on quota-sharing arrangements for all three stocks. Therefore, all agreed to engage in further work on sharing arrangements early next year. These discussions are likely to be very challenging. Ireland will pursue our position that the share set aside for Iceland and the Russian Federation in the 2014 agreement was too high and must be reduced.

Earlier this year, Norway and the Faroes set unacceptably high unilateral quotas for mackerel for 2021. I have made my concerns on this matter clear and called on Commissioner Sinkeviius to reject completely these unilateral and unsustainable actions. If this unacceptable behaviour by Norway or the Faroes is repeated in 2022, the responsible parties, namely, the EU and the UK, must work together and use all available tools so that there are real and effective consequences for such behaviour. I continue to make clear that the EU has available to it the possibility of using trade sanctions if other means are not effective. However, I hope that forthright negotiation between all parties will bring a satisfactory resolution to the issue.

On the sustainability impact assessment, SIA, as mentioned, the stocks the EU shares with the UK are presented in the Commission’s proposal as pro memoria. For Ireland this meant that all but two stocks are listed in the pro memoria method. In order for the SIA to be carried out, the ICES scientific advice for the stocks has been used as a basis for the SIA. As part of that SIA, an open consultation process was initiated, whereby stakeholders were asked to submit their comments and observations on the Commission proposal for fishing opportunities for next year and the ICES advice. From 4 November, an online web portal on was activated to enable the transmission of electronic submissions for consideration. Six submissions to the public consultation were received. The full content of all the submissions received by the deadline will be published on the fishingnet.iewebsite.

In addition to the written submissions, I convened a meeting of stakeholders, including fishing industry representatives and environmental NGOs, on 1 December. The purpose of this meeting was to give a further opportunity to stakeholders to outline their positions on the many aspects of this proposal and the scientific advice. I thank all the stakeholders for their contributions to this impact assessment.

Stakeholders set out a range of positions. However, there were also many commonalities. I agree with many of the sentiments expressed through the consultation process. I consider that all of them have the same objective, which is sustainable fishing and the protection of our fishing resource and marine ecosystem for future generations.

There is a clear call for adherence to the advice on setting TACs in accordance with fishing at maximum sustainable yield from stakeholders. We must also make use of the provisions of the western waters multi-annual plan to deal with stocks where scientific advice indicates the stock is in poor shape.

In recent years, in order to reduce catches of depleted stocks in mixed fisheries, TACs were set as by-catch only at levels that help the biomass of these vulnerable stocks to recover to sustainable levels and these were complemented by remedial technical measures in the Celtic sea.

The Marine Institute and BIM have made an invaluable contribution to the assessment of the Commission’s proposal, which is contained in the sea fisheries sustainability impact assessment, which is before the committee today. I would briefly like to set out the findings contained in that assessment. With regard to the biological assessment, from a purely biological perspective the Marine Institute’s view, which coincides with the ICES view, is that there has been an improvement in the status of some fish stocks. However, others remain a concern. In the impact assessment, the Marine Institute summarises the pressure on the 74 stocks dealt with in the 2021 stock book and compares this assessment with the same evaluation presented in previous years' stock books. The number of sustainably fished stocks has increased to 35 in 2021. In terms of percentages this is an increase of 47%. The percentage and number of stocks overfished also declined to 11 stocks or 15%. The number of stocks with unknown status has remained the same. It is good to see stocks on an upward trend for 2022. It must be remembered that as recently as 2013 there were only 20 sustainably fished stocks and now there are 35.

There are multiple reasons why stocks have unknown status, including short-time series of biological data, conflicting input data, low catches or insufficient sampling data or missing catch information. Over time the percentage of stocks with unknown pressure and state indicators has declined. The specific details for all stocks are available in the sustainability impact assessment which will be laid before the Dáil and in the stock book which was prepared by the Marine Institute and is available on their website.

As I indicated earlier, BIM has based the socio-economic assessment on the ICES advice. Therefore it is important to highlight that these estimates may change, depending on the final TACs agreed between the EU and UK. As this advice is for single stock assessment, we can expect significant changes for stocks in mixed fisheries where a particular stock is depleted. This is the case for cod stocks around the coast, and the TACs will be set for demersal stocks where cod is a by-catch to support the protection and rebuilding of such depleted stocks. If the TACs were to be agreed as the single stock advice recommends, we would see a net reduction in fishing opportunity of 7% by volume in tonnes and 5% by value. This would amount to a direct income reduction of €11.8 million. For the demersal, whitefish, sector, while this would mean a 2% increase in volume of fishing activity it would equate to a reduction of 3% by value. For the pelagic sector it would result in a reduction of 9% by volume and 7% by value with a direct income reduction of €7.9 million. This is primarily due to the decrease in mackerel, mainly from the advice but also for the progressive application of the TCA.

In addition to the direct losses of quota reductions to the fleet, income would also be lost from the processing sector. This would obviously have a knock-on effect for employment. BIM further estimates, on the basis of the most recent employment surveys of the catching sector, that if the TACS were set in accordance with the single stock advice it could impact 248 full-time and part-time jobs.

The Commission's November proposal does not include the Hague preferences, which are additional amounts of quota that Ireland claims for important whitefish stocks when the TACs fall below set levels. Because the provisional quotas set out in the Commission’s contingency plans are based on the 2021 quotas, the Hague preferences are included in these amounts. However, we cannot take the preferences for granted, as we know from this battle every year. Many member states object strenuously to their application as the additional quota for Ireland comes off their allocations. Ensuring that the preferences are applied will be a key political objective for me in the negotiations, as it was last year and always is from a national point of view.

On the strategic impact assessment, the sea fisheries sustainability impact assessment provides a good picture of the state of stocks and possible implications for the year ahead. I would like to thank and acknowledge all those who contributed to the production of this impact assessment.While it is based on ICES advice, rather than TACs proposed by the Commission, it highlights the potential for significant impacts on the Irish fishing industry. There are some stocks where ICES has issued advice for zero catches. However, with the implementation of the landing obligation and the requirement to land all catches, including by-catches, from such stocks this would lead to “choke” situations in mixed fisheries.

In its proposal, the Commission refers to the establishment of specific TACs for by-catches of these stocks as was done for 2020 and 2021.

The proposal highlights the difficulty of fishing all stocks in a mixed fishery at maximum sustainable yield at the same time. The Commission also points out the need to strike a balance between the potential for severe socioeconomic impacts and the need to achieve a good environmental status for stocks. I will be supportive of a similar approach as was taken in previous years for these depleted stocks.

I look forward to hearing the views of members and answering any questions.

Jackie Cahill (Tipperary, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister for a very comprehensive opening statement, even if he did not stay within the time allowed.

Michael Collins (Cork South West, Independent)
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I thank the Minister for his opening statement. We are where we are. I have spoken a good deal about fishing in the past 12 months. I have been talking to the fishing organisations and there is considerable anger and bitterness in regard to fishing. I have spoken at great length about that. It is now almost a year since the Brexit EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement, TCA, was agreed between Mr. Barnier and Lord Frost, yet I am now told that not one hour of work has even begun between our Government, civil servants and fish producer groups on this critical Common Fisheries Policy review. This is despite the Minister and civil servants making several promises about the forthcoming reviews of the Common Fisheries Policy 2013, which expires on 31 December 2022.

It should be stated that Commissioner Sinkeviius appeared singularly unaware of just how devastating Brexit is for the Irish fishing industry and just how little of our own fish Irish fishers are allowed to catch under the rules of the CFP, even in our sovereign waters. Assurances were given by the Commissioner that a review would take place. I seek a date from the Minister for when this review will begin and demand that the fishing industries be given a role in this critically important enterprise.

We talk about burden sharing and much time has been spent discussing the position in which fishermen find themselves. I talk to them in Castletownbere, Glandore and Kinsale. These men, many of whom are probably the same age as me, trained for one thing only and fishing has been a tough life. They do not want to hear about decommissioning or tie up; they want to hear how they are going to fish their way out of the problems they are in at the moment. There are plenty of fish in the Irish Sea; there is no shortage of fish. It appears we have handed over about 85% of our fish to foreign vessels. That is where the problem lies. We are burden sharing. If we were granted equal rights and equal opportunities to the natural resource in abundance around our island nation, just how many fishermen would even consider decommissioning? None of them would because they want to fish. However, a few them will take the decommissioning option because they have had it and are burnt.

The Minister said he was doing his best which, in fairness, is great going forward. I fully support him if that is the case. Looking at what has happened in the past, not 30 years ago but in the past year or two, how can the political system have any confidence that we will be able to equal up with the French and others? Michel Barnier did a good deal for them and fair play to him. We have to hand it to him. How will Ireland deliver a good deal to its fishermen that will include a guarantee of burden sharing? There is no point in hearing words next week. We need to know, in figures, what is going to happen.

The Minister spoke about different fish quotas, which is fair enough. Is anybody in this country going to negotiate to secure a fair deal to Irish fishermen on bluefin tuna? The Europeans are raking it up all around us and laughing into our face, while we cannot get anything. That is just one of many issues I could raise. I will take a lot of convincing that the French, Spanish and others will settle for lower quotas and give higher quotas to Ireland given the shocking deal that was done behind our backs last year. Where will we pick up quotas for bluefin tuna and other species and achieve equalisation that gives our fishermen an opportunity to work? Many of them do not know what is around the corner and are basically facing unemployment. There are few options other than decommissioning and tying up their boats. That will kick the can down the road a bit. However, for the sake of people's incomes and livelihoods and to allow them to put food on the table and continue the work they have done so proudly down the years, the Minister will have to convince me and others that he and the Taoiseach are fighting for us to ensure the rest of Europe will take a bit of burden sharing.

Jackie Cahill (Tipperary, Fianna Fail)
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Does the Minister wish to reply to the Deputy?

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Deputy for his contribution. The CFP review will be very important. I have been adamant at every opportunity I have had in engaging with the Commission and other member states to make it absolutely clear that the issue of the disproportionate burden share on Ireland compared to other member states coming out of the Brexit agreement is something I want addressed. I will fight tooth and nail in every way that I can to try to make progress on that, as I have done so far. Indeed, I have made some progress on some measures so far and have worked closely with industry representatives to look at and identify opportunities to improve our position around that.

At the latest EU Council meeting, I voted against the proposals of the Commission. Ireland was the only member state to vote against it because I am deadly serious about representing Ireland's interest on this issue and trying to improve our position. I am doing that diplomatically in every way possible and in leveraging our national position on every issue that arises. Indeed, I am doing that, where appropriate, by voting against proposals as well, as I did at the latest EU Council meeting.

I have obviously engaged very closely with industry stakeholders too, including the sea fisheries task force, which I put together specifically to try to address the outcome of Brexit and to have fishers themselves come together and advise me, as Minister, and advise the Government on how we can make the most of the sector and of our natural resources in the years ahead. It has outlined many proposed measures that we can put in place. They are asking for support for the sector and some measures are already put in place, such as the temporary tie-up scheme. The task force has also given very significant advice on, in terms of how, as Minister, I approach the CFP review and on how we can all work together and how I can work with the sector to address that burden share. That task force has done immense work. It has been the fisher representatives themselves who have framed it, put it together and put those proposals forward. I am giving it my full consideration and I have implemented some of them. I certainly hope, with the support of my colleagues, to deliver as much as I can on the recommendations of the fisher representatives themselves through that task force.

It is important that all Oireachtas Members closely examine the work that the fisher representatives have done themselves. The Deputy said that he does not support the recommendations that the both the fishers and stakeholders themselves have put together. He should consider and reflect on that. It is really important that we pool the ideas, resources, thoughts and brains of everyone in the sector to best represent the sector in the time ahead. I certainly will lead at a European level and at national level in fighting every way I can to represent them. I will use the best ideas that we have and take the best advice that we can to achieve that. The work that the fisher representatives have done on that task force report at quite a seminal, although challenging, moment in the history of our fisheries is important. I certainly very much look forward to working off the report in the time ahead.

Michael Collins (Cork South West, Independent)
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I did not get an answer about the bluefin tuna. I would also like to clarify that I do not support parts of the task force report in respect of decommissioning. The Irish South and West Fish Producers Organisation in west Cork do not either. They have been made well aware of that. I just want that clarified because the Minister keeps me throwing at me that I do. It is a terrible situation for fisherman. The best options we can offer them that came up over the past 12 months are either decommissioning or tie-up schemes.

I would appreciate if the Minister could answer me on bluefin tuna.

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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In the Dáil earlier, the Deputy said he did not support the report but just now he said there is only one part he does not support. It was given very strong consideration by all fisheries stakeholders and all of them came together to fully sign off on that report. We should all reflect on the different measures. Undoubtedly, it is not a position any of us wanted to see ourselves in, but it is a position that we all have to show leadership on. Particularly, those fisher representatives show leadership in looking at the difficult challenges that are there and are best advising myself, as Minister, and the Government in how we can proceed and support the industry going forward.

We do not have a national quota for bluefin tuna. The available bluefin tuna quota has been allocated each year to member states on the basis of relative stability since the late 1990s. It is something that fishers have raised with me continuously. It is obviously something I will push for as part of the Common Fisheries Policy policy review. However, it is not something we have had a track record on in the past . That is the challenge, and I will certainly be leading on it and doing all I can in the context of the review.

Tim Lombard (Fine Gael)
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I welcome the Minister and acknowledge the contribution he has made. I thank him for his comprehensive opening statement. I wish to ask, in particular, about Norway and Faroe Islands. Evidence was given to the committee yesterday, and we have also read in the newspapers, regarding the level of overfishing involving Norway and the Faroe Islands. Some 55% of the mackerel quota is being overfished. Realistically, we are looking at something like 100,000 tonnes of mackerel being overfished. That is a significant figure which will have a huge impact on the entire fishing quota going forward unless we get a handle on the matter. Does the Minister believe that sanctions need to be imposed on the Faroe Islands and Norway in particular? What are the timelines regarding those issues? When will the Commission step in, adopt a hard line and take into consideration the vast amount of mackerel that has been overfished? We need reassurance that the Commission will do something regarding this issue. This is a massive issue, particularly when one takes into consideration the long-term effect the vast amount of overfishing being done by these two nations is taken into consideration. Will the Minister comment on it?

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Senator for raising this very important issue, which has been a tremendous source of frustration for everyone in the sector. Watching Norway and the Faroe Islands act unilaterally in regard last year and set unilateral TACs was a tremendous source of frustration. Everyone would like more fish. That is a universal truth across the fishing sector. However, people have to work together in order to sustainably manage the stocks that are there, otherwise the inevitable will happen if they are not fished sustainably and they will not be there for anyone in years ahead. That is not something anybody can stand over. Certainly, the actions of Norwegians and the Faroese in terms of unilaterally setting extra catches and quotas for themselves and not engaging with either ourselves or the UK in relation to coming to an agreement is totally unacceptable. It is something I have raised very firmly with Commissioner Sinkeviius. It is something he has very much acknowledged and engaged on and he is very active on in terms of trying to address it. As I said in my opening contribution, sanctions should be available to us if progress is not made on this matter. In the short term, we need to see engagement and work at EU level and also in conjunction with the UK to try to resolve this issue. If we cannot resolve it, then the issue of trade sanctions should certainly be on the table. What we saw last year is not acceptable or sustainable.

Martin Browne (Tipperary, Sinn Fein)
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I welcome the Minister. What I see here is another example, if one were needed, of what can only be described at the supervised decline of our fishing industry. Yesterday, we discussed the decommissioning of vessels in order that the number will align with our estimated fish stocks. The latter is another cut to our fishing fleet. Where will it stop, particularly if we just keep coming back with this decommissioning? Now we are looking at a report which confirms that there is likely to be income reduction of €11.8 million for the fishing sector.

What that means in real terms, according to this report, is the loss of 248 jobs, most of them in Donegal. The report we discussed in, I believe, November of last year referred to the loss of 409 jobs. Now we are talking about reducing the fishing fleet. Will this restrict the potential for future growth?

We heard yesterday that the Department is opposed to banking some of the fishing capacity to be decommissioned. If that is the case, will the Minister tell the committee why? If some of it were banked, we would have something available for young fishers in the future. What is the Minister’s message to these young people in these areas? Does he have any future plans for them on the seas or is the industry to be downsized to such an extent that it will not attract any newcomers in the years ahead?

We also heard about how people in the fishing industry have become disillusioned with what has been forced on them or, rather, taken away from them, as I said, with one third of the fleet being decommissioned. They feel as if they have been left with no choice other than to get out. At the same time, they do not want to go bankrupt. Will the Department investigate a way to deal with the requirements to pay temporary cessation aid in the event that a vessel owner chooses to apply for voluntary permanent cessation?

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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I thank Deputy Browne. I do not agree that it is a policy of supervised decline. Everything I am doing as Minister is to support the sector. That includes fighting to try to get additional quota at European level and protect the sector against the challenges posed by Brexit, as well as seeking to ensure we have a sustainable industry in the future, one that is based on sustainable fish stocks that will be available to fish not just this year but for many years into the future. That is the entire objective here.

There is no doubt that the impact from Brexit has been a once-in-a-generation event. It has been a real impact and we have fought hard, with the industry, to try to mitigate, in the first instance, the potential damage from Brexit and to address the damage it has caused since, both at European level and at national level. As I said in relation to the task force report, we are bringing together the brains and experiences of the fishers to advise and plot out a way forward to maximise our strength, grow our quota and address the challenges posed by the reduced quota arising from Brexit. The proposal from the task force on decommissioning, for example, was designed to increase the quota for the remaining boats and make them more sustainable on the basis that there would be fewer boats in the fleet. That was the rationale and logic behind the proposal. It is obviously not a position that any of us want to be in. I will continue to do all I can in the time ahead to increase that quota, particularly with regard to the Common Fisheries Policy review that is coming up.

If fishing capacity is taken out with public aid, EU law makes clear that it must be removed from the fleet in terms of vessel numbers and cannot be banked. The industry is very much aware of that when we recommend decommissioning. The objective behind it was to provide more quota opportunity for the boats that remain. We are undoubtedly in a challenging time. I have recognised from the outset the threats that were posed by Brexit. I am working with the sector to try to address this. However, this is about ensuring there is a sustainable future for fisheries and young people.

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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At 5.30 p.m. yesterday, the committee engaged with the chief executives of four producer organisations, namely, the Irish South and West Fish Producers Organisation, the Irish South and East Fish Producers Organisation, the Killybegs Fishermen’s Organisation and the Irish Fish Producers Organisation. I do not know from where the Minister has such a chirpy assessment of his task force report. I assume he was very busy yesterday but perhaps he will get a chance to watch a recording of yesterday's proceedings and listen to the testimony of these leaders in the fishing industry. They were certainly not delighted with the outcome under which it is proposed to decommission one third of the remaining offshore fleet of vessels of more than 18 m.

That figure is 60 out of 180. In 2006, we had approximately 280 vessels, over 18 m, fishing offshore. After this package, we will be down to almost one third of that figure. In the space of 15 years, our fishing fleet, which had been over 18 m fishing offshore will be down to one third of what it was. Even still, the Minister does not accept that there has been a decline, or the assessment in the industry. It is a disaster.

The problem with the Minister’s senior officials overseeing a process of decommissioning and where understandably fishermen who are burdened with huge loans do not see any future in the industry, have no faith in their political leaders, get to get their fair share of the fish in their own waters, have decided they need to exit the industry. I have to say, who could blame them? Let us not say that this is anything other than what it is: an absolute disgrace. It is shameful that we are down to one third of the fleet that we had in 2006. It is one third over 18 m of fish offshore.

I toured the piers and harbours, like the Minister did, over the last year. I have met fishermen from one end of the country, right round to the other. They have no faith in those who are in decision-making, be they in the Department or in politics. They have not had any faith in a long time. They believe that out of the Irish exclusive economic zone we get the quotas that are allocated under the Common Fisheries Policy. To be clear, what is allocated under the Common Fisheries Policy to those in the Irish fishing fleet is estimated at 15% of what is available. Some 85% goes to the fishing fleet of other member states. Britain has secured 75% of the fish in its waters for the fishing fleet around its coast. I am not arguing for 75%. I am arguing for our fair share. I appreciate that we are within the European Union. I appreciate that there is give and take when one is involved in trade. We export 90% of our beef from Ireland. I therefore appreciate that there has to be access to those waters around us for all of the fleets of the European Union. However, we want our fair share.

I ask the Minister if he will do more than have a vote at the European Council? Will he ask the Taoiseach to join with him to go on a fact delivery process across Europe to tell them the story of what is happening in our waters? It has been happening in our waters. Our fleet, over 18 m, under this scheme that the Minister put forward is down to one third of what it was 15 years ago. The decline is there for all to see. People have no choice. I want to ask the Minister to at least watch the video back from yesterday of the testimony of those who were there. The Minister should remember that he has met fishermen online, upfront and all around the coast, as have I. As an industry, it is heartbreaking. Cyprus and Ireland are the only island nations in the European Union now. This is an immense resource all around us. It has to be managed sustainably. It does not make sense not to manage that resource sustainably. We are talking about a fair share of the fish in that immense resource all around us.

I am telling the Minister straight that if he thinks that the producer organisations and fishermen are happy with this outcome, then he is living in cloud cuckoo land. That is the straight truth. He should lift the phone to all of them tomorrow and ask them about it. He should listen to the testimony that they gave yesterday. It was with a heavy heart that they came forward. The only representative who made any positive assessment of it was Mr. Seán O’Donoghue from the Killybegs Fishermen’s Organisation.

Financial supports and investment in piers and harbours are welcome, but where does this come from? We were given €1 billion of the €5 billion available under the Brexit adjustment reserve fund to reflect the serious impact of Brexit on us. How can we ask for our fair share of the fish in our waters? If I were a minister in France, the Netherlands, Belgium or Spain, I would tell Ireland that it had already received money to decommission its fleet and ask why it needed a bigger share of the catch when it does not have enough boats to avail of a bigger share. Does the Minister not understand the logic of that position? If he proposes to make redundant and decommission a high percentage of our fleet, how can he, on the other hand, argue for more fish when there are fewer boats to catch the fish? If he has no plan to invest in the fleet, how can the fleet catch more fish? The truth is that fisherman around the coast feel deeply betrayed. They feel angry at yet another decommissioning and tie-up scheme. They want the Government to say out loud what is happening.

I ask the Minister again to convene a meeting with the chief executives of the four producer organisations I mentioned, the Irish Islands Marine Resource Organisation, which is a new PO, all the leaders and perhaps members of the task force and agree on the percentage of fish in our waters that we are giving away? What is the actual percentage? I am looking at the 2020 stock book from the Marine Institute. I see our figure versus the EU figure. It is in the stock book. Comparing the 2021 stock book versus the 2020 stock book, it seems there was a dramatic reduction in the quota and catch in 2021.

We first need to agree on what the problem is. I need the Minister and his senior Department officials to sit down with the industry and agree together. If the industry says we are getting 15% of the catch in our waters and the Minister says, as he did today, that we are getting 35%, what chance do we have to succeed? If I were a French, German, Dutch, Belgian or Spanish minister and the Irish people were making the case for their coastal communities on the basis that they are getting 15%, whereas the Minister says they are actually getting 35%, I would not be worried about having to address the quota shortage or the injustice of all of this. As a Minister of one of those countries, I would not be worried because the Department here is saying we are getting more than twice as much as what our own fisherman are saying. The Minister needs to get on the same page. I appreciate that has to be based on demonstrable data. The Minister and everyone else need to agree on that and get it because it is a huge problem.

The Minister said in the Dáil today that we are getting about 35% of the fish in our own waters. That is what he is being advised and what he said today. That is his negotiating starting point. Our fishermen do not believe that for one moment. This needs to be ironed out. The Minister has toured the country, as have I, and I am telling him now that is where it is at. I ask him to please listen to the testimony given at yesterday's meeting in order that he knows exactly where the Irish fishing industry stands on this.

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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I have been to the vast majority of ports and harbours in the country and held meetings with fishers, online at first and then, following my appointment as Minister, at pier sides throughout the country where I listened to fishers directly. I have been listening very carefully and very much understand the pressure on fishermen and the massive challenge we have. If the Deputy had been listening to me, he would have found that I did not say in any way that anyone is happy about where we are at.

I do not know how the Deputy would come to that conclusion from what I have been saying. I have been crystal clear on the massive challenge and the significant hit the sector has taken from Brexit. My sole purpose as Minister has been to try to protect the sector against that in the first instance and then to work with it to address the issue afterwards, particularly through the task force and working directly with fishers and their representatives.

I was in the Dáil yesterday when the committee was meeting. Last week, I met all of the CEOs and all the producer organisations, including the Irish Islands Marine Resource Organisation, which I appointed as a producer organisation in the past year. I have a meeting with them again tomorrow and I have been meeting them regularly during this process.

The Deputy used the word "chirpy". I do not understand how, if he had been listening, he could find anything "chirpy" about the situation we are in. It is a massive challenge on which all of us are working. I am leading out in every way I can to try to address the situation. I have brought together all of the leading voices among our fisher representatives to best advise on how we deal with the challenges we have, strengthen our position in the years ahead and deal with the immediate challenge of the impact on quota.

On the figures, this is not a matter on which people gather around the table and barter to decide what the figure is. It has to be done on the basis of science and data. That is what is important. The 15% figure the Deputy used is based on a stock book assessment of the total figures for any fish for which we have a quota toehold, regardless of which waters it is in, whether it is the North Sea, the north Atlantic, our 200-mile zone, the Celtic Sea, the Channel or the Bay of Biscay. It looks at every single stock we have any share in and then looks at the overall share we have and takes a percentage of that. It does not look at what is caught in our 200-mile exclusive economic zone, EEZ. It is the best assessment possible in relation to what is caught in our EEZ.

As I said in the Dáil earlier today, the Marine Institute's total assessment of the value of what is caught in our EEZ is €278 million, of which €106 million is caught by the Irish fleet, amounting to a value of 38%. That is based on the Marine Institute's figures and assessment. That represents two thirds of the total fish that we catch. We catch another one third of our fish outside of our 200-mile EEZ. Many of them are caught off the north coast of Scotland, the Celtic Sea and further south. That is the position. It is my objective to do all I can to try to increase that.

People will refer to other European fleets and the situation they are in. We have seen decommissioning take place in France and Spain arising from the Brexit agreement. There has not been a change or adjustment to the relative size of member states' quotas since the quotas were first put in place when relative stability was first struck in the early 1980s. There has not been any change. It is not that one member state's quota has gone up and another's has gone down in that time. Every member state has remained stuck to that relative stability struck in the early 1980s.

The Brexit adjustment and impact are the big factors that have caused an adjustment. That has been central to everything I have done throughout this process. I have been listening clearly to fishers and will continue to do so. As I said to Deputy Browne earlier in the Dáil, at the time of Brexit when I was fighting that cause on behalf of fishers, it took about two weeks before Sinn Féin made any public comment. Brexit had the single biggest impact to our fisheries and quotas in the history of the European Union and it was two weeks before there was any comment from Deputy Mac Lochlainn or anyone else in Sinn Féin on it. Now that the storm has passed and we are trying to deal with and fix the problem, the Deputy turns up and sells himself as standing up for fishermen. When the battle was taking place, the Deputy was not seen for two weeks. However, we all have to work together to address this issue.

My only purpose is to recognise the massive challenge the sector has and work with it to try to improve our position.

That is why I set up the task force. Nobody would have been happy with the situation we were in but everybody has to show leadership in terms of recognising the challenge and looking at the best way to strengthen our position coming out of that. That is what those who worked on that task force did and put massive work and effort into. It is something I recognise and I will do all I can to back those ideas and proposals. I am still not clear on whether Sinn Féin backs the report of the sea fisheries task force. After the hour and a half of debate in the Dáil today, I was none the wiser. They might be able to clarify that in due course. I thank the Deputy for his contribution today.

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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I wish to correct the record. I have just checked and on 1 January 2021, a statement was issued from me in regard to the Brexit negotiations. I do not know where the Minister is getting the two weeks from. There were also a range of parliamentary questions submitted before and after that date to the Minister and to the Minister for Foreign Affairs, including a question on what efforts the Minister for Foreign Affairs made when he engaged with the French minister, which was critical to these negotiations. I understand he received a briefing from the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine. That was the Minister for Foreign Affairs. There is no evidence he ever actually delivered that briefing to the minister. I was very busy before and after that and I am very happy to work with the Minister moving forward, just to clarify all of that.

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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In response to Deputy Mac Lochlainn, that is exactly my point. He referred to 1 January 2021 and it was Christmas Eve, 24 December, when that historic impact happened in regard to Brexit. The Taoiseach, the Minister, Deputy Coveney, and I were meeting fisher representatives the day after St. Stephen's Day dealing with the issue. Indeed, if we went back, the weekend before Christmas Eve was when it broke across Europe as to what the challenge facing our fishing industry actually was. The Deputy will remember many of the national fishery representatives on the national media that weekend explaining the plight they were in, the plight I was working with my colleagues at Government level to try to address. As the Deputy said, it was two weeks later when we got the first comment from him, despite the fact that it was a monumental moment in our fishing history. That was the way the Deputy was standing up for our fishing representatives at the time.

Jackie Cahill (Tipperary, Fianna Fail)
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Now, Minister.

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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It is a bit rich to hear the Deputy selling himself now when he wasn't seen for dust-----

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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The Minister sounds pretty desperate-----

Jackie Cahill (Tipperary, Fianna Fail)
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Minister, let us stick to the agenda. I call Deputy Ring.

Michael Ring (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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I will be brief. I welcome the Minister and wish him luck in the negotiations next week. One of the things I do not like is how this fisheries issue is run into Christmas Day or Christmas Eve or St. Stephen's Day. It puts a lot of pressure on people to make a correct decision. It is not fair on officials and families, particularly in Ireland where we like Christmas. However, yesterday we listened to the fishermen and to their very serious problems. I am not going to tell the Minister this; he is from Donegal and knows the problems. He knows who the fishermen are and what they are looking for. Those in government and their officials have a big job to do in Europe next week. I wish them luck. There are a few issues that I would like to see taken up seriously. These jobs are very important to rural Ireland. We have lost many people in the fishing industry over the past couple of years simply because they are not able to compete with the bigger boats. The smaller guys are being pushed out. I am not in favour of decommissioning, but it is there. If it is there, it had to be there. In relation to decommissioning, I ask the Minister and his officials to make it worthwhile for the people who want to get out. If he wants people out, then he has to pay them to get out. He has to say to them there is something there for them when they are out of fishing. These people do not want to be out, they want to be fishing but the scheme is there. There are people who feel they cannot survive any longer. They need to get out and need that deal to be there.

In regard to the quota, there is a big job to do. It is going to be a difficult job. In our Irish waters we have substantial amounts of fish that are being fished by European boats, including the French and everybody else. They are talking about burden sharing in Europe. This is a time when they need to support our fishermen here in Ireland. We have never been found wanting as Europeans. When something had to be done or something was needed, our Government and our country has always supported the European Union in regard to issues. This issue at this particular time is a very serious issue for fishermen and I hope the Minister can get that message home, loud and clear, next week at the meeting. I ask him to look for some kind of a scheme to try to get young people some support, to get more people. I know we are talking about decommissioning but if we do not have a scheme for young people we will have no fishermen or fisherwomen for the future. I ask the Minister to see what can be done to encourage young people and to give them a scheme that would make it worth their while to get into fishing.

The fleet is getting older, the generations fishing are getting older and we need to have young people in that industry. It is an important industry for us.

I will finish on this note. The Minister is the Minister for agriculture and for fisheries. What worries me is, and I make this point to the officials, we had scares in this world in regard to food safety in the past. I worry that with what the European Commission and the Green Party are proposing and given what is happening around the world now, unless we protect the industries that provide fresh food for this country, we could have a serious difficulty down the road at some stage. People say it will not happen but it happened with water and with disease and the pandemic we now have and we must be careful to protect the good food industry we have, particularly our fishing and agriculture. I wish the Minister well next week. He will do his best. He must be strong and I hope the rest of the Government will support him strongly and that the Taoiseach and the Minister for Foreign Affairs give him the support that he needs. I do not like him having to go in on Christmas Eve, fighting on the day before Christmas to get what he has to get done, but he knows what he has to do for the fishermen of this country. They are on their knees and they need support.

Jackie Cahill (Tipperary, Fianna Fail)
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Does the Minister wish to comment?

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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I thank Deputy Ring. His point is absolutely valid in regard to ensuring sustainable and viable future careers for young people in particular in the sector. That is what we have to work our way through and is what we have to provide. It is a sector that has a strong future in our country and we must ensure it has. Central to that is young people coming in and central to that is our supporting them in doing that and maximising the opportunity in terms of fish and quotas. That is, as the Deputy says, a big challenge we have at the meeting next weekend and in terms of the forthcoming Common Fisheries Policy review. I thank Deputy Ring for his comments.

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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In regard to the issue of the percentage catch in our waters, can the Minister tell me whether he would be willing to meet the producer organisations of all sizes, as well as the co-operatives - basically the people who took part in the task force along with the inshore sector - and agree what is the catch? Obviously it has to be based on real data that are agreed as we know the phrase, "lies, damn lies and statistics". This would get everybody on the same page. Would the Minister agree that is critical? If everybody agrees what the problem is, then that would be a starting point. As it is critical that this should happen, is the Minister willing to do that and convene a forum with them all, as well as the Marine Institute, to agree what the scale of the problem is and to get on the same page in regard to that matter? That is the first point.

Second, we know how it works. The Minister obviously will be out there, in that he goes out to these negotiations and meets fisheries ministers. They have briefings from their departments on either side and everybody goes away and nothing gets advanced. Would he be agreeable to an information campaign of some kind about the impact on the Irish coastal communities? The fact is that after this scheme, we are now down to around a third. This is the third EU-funded decommissioning scheme in Ireland. We are down to a third of what we were 15 years ago. Would the Minister be agreeable to do more than just go to the Agriculture and Fisheries Council but to have some strategy around how we would move to build support in Europe for a fair deal for Ireland and to tell the story? Is there some kind of campaign or strategy he could undertake there? He and I can go back and forth and do all the political stuff but he is the Minister, he has the resources and the power to do all this. He has toured around the piers and harbours, as have I, and he must have heard the same feedback. I was at his town hall online meeting with the Donegal fishermen. He will remember that meeting well. It was tough going. People were angry. They are unsure of what the future is going to be. He has heard the same thing and he knows about it.

What will we do about it? What will be the plan for our country to undo this and challenge an injustice? If we have never learned, surely the experience of burden sharing is the final straw for us. Surely that must be the last blow we can take, where we are just not seeing anyone stand up for our fishing interests. There was not equal burden sharing of the Brexit deal. We have not been taken seriously. The Minister talks about two weeks, but this is now a year on and still we do not have fair burden sharing. The way that we are going at the moment, I have seen no evidence that it will happen. At some point there has to be a strategy to turn this around, other than what we have been doing and failed on so far. That is the challenge.

How will the Minister build consensus across the people who participated in this task force? How do we build consensus and agreement about what the problem is? If we do not agree with what the problem is, how can we solve it? Once the Minister has a consensus, what will we do about it? What kind of a campaign will be launched? Will we get those voices of fishers onto the media in Europe? Is there some strategy or something we can do? What we have been doing as a country has not worked for so long. I hope the Minister can sense that I am trying to be constructive in putting that to him. He knows the sense of despair and anger in coastal communities, but we need to do something about it. We need to turn it around. I hope he takes those comments in the spirit that they are intended.

Jackie Cahill (Tipperary, Fianna Fail)
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Those were mostly comments, not questions. I will let in Deputy Kehoe in because he has just joined the meeting. Then I will come back to the Minister.

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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Sorry, there are questions. I have asked at least two or three questions.

Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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Chair, I have no bother if Deputy Mac Lochlainn would like to issue more questions again.

Jackie Cahill (Tipperary, Fianna Fail)
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Will the Minister answer the questions? Then we will go to Deputy Kehoe.

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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Building that consensus about what we need to do and the challenges there is very much what I have sought to do. The reason I set up the sea fisheries task force in the first instance was to bring all of those key voices together to assess the very real challenges that we have and to pool ideas and consideration on how we can meet that challenge and best support our sector in the time ahead. The body of work that was done is a significant one. It was painstaking and challenging work. As was said, it was not a situation that anyone wanted to be in. All of those involved showed the leadership to grapple with the issues that we have, to come forward with suggestions in terms of how we can support the sector with investment and in schemes, and to support the sector in terms of fighting our corner and fighting the battle at European level. The consensus was there and we built on it. That is something I will continue to do and take forward, both in terms of the investment aspect and in terms of the battle at European level. As I said, Ireland was the only member state to vote against the proposals at the last Council meeting. Particularly, as we come now to the fisheries policy review, I will very determinedly work closely with the industry representatives.

I asked the Marine Institute for an update on the most recent, up-to-date figures in terms of our exclusive economic zone, EEZ. In June 2018, in preparation for Brexit, it published a fact sheet on the landings in the Irish EEZ for the years from 2011 to 2015. Under the Common Fisheries Policy, official landing statistics are reported by member states by ICES division, rather than by EEZ. Most ICES divisions straddle more than one country's EEZ. Landings are reported based on statistical rectangles within that. These are small spatial units by which catches are reported, approximately 30 to 36 nautical miles in size. In order to estimate the landings within the Irish EEZ, the Marine Institute advised that the best available method was to sum the data by statistical rectangle for all of these units in the Irish economic zone. For rectangles that fall partially inside our EEZ, the landings inside that EEZ are assumed to be proportional to the spatial area of the rectangle that lies inside the EEZ.

Annual international landings data by species and country at the statistical rectangle level are held by the Joint Research Centre on behalf of the Scientific, Technical and Economic Committee for Fisheries. Those data were made available to the Marine Institute for most recent years, but it does not currently provide cache data at country and species level by on landings taken in the relevant ICES areas.

The Marine Institute has access to those detailed data for Irish vessels, as well as international data. On this basis, it is estimated the proportion of total landings from the Irish exclusive economic zone, EEZ, taken by Irish vessels, was the balance taken by vessels from other member states and third countries. That is the basis on which it came to the assessment that, overall, Irish vessels took 35% of landings by species between 2015 and 2019. As I said, the overall percentage of the value of the landings taken by Irish vessels in the Irish EEZ being 38.8% for all species and 36.1% for total allowable catch, TAC, species only. It is work that the Marine Institute will further update. Again, it has to be based on the data. It is something that I have discussed with producer organisations previously, and I clarified the position from the point of view of the information provided by the Marine Institute as well. I am very happy to engage with them on this issue again. I emphasise to Deputy Mac Lochlainn that it needs to be informed by the data.

Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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I will not detain the Minister too long. He has very difficult talks ahead at the European Council meeting and negotiations. Every country will be looking for the same thing and that is additional quota in whichever fish species they are interested in. There is expectation and anticipation. With Brexit and the fallout of Brexit, what does the Minister believe will come out of the Council meetings on the back of Brexit now that the British will not be there? Will that make a difference to the talks and negotiations? Every fisherman is hurting. I had a meeting on this in respect of the east coast only last week. There was a debate on my local radio station on Monday morning in this regard. They spoke about the negotiations coming up and what might and might not come out of them. They are all looking for a secure future.

Everybody here thinks it is a very simple job but it is not. It is actually a very difficult job that the Minister has ahead of him and like Deputy Ring, I wish him well. There is a huge amount of work going on in the background at the moment with the Minister's officials. What impact will Brexit have on the negotiations?

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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I thank Deputy Kehoe and he is right in terms of the amount of technical assessment and work that has to go into getting our position as strong as possible and to fighting our corner and getting the best outcome possible. The roles of BIM, represented here today by Mr. Dominic Rihan, of the Marine Institute, represented here today by Dr. Ciaran Kelly, and of my own officials, including Dr. Cecil Beamish, Ms Josephine Kelly and the team, are important. A massive amount of work goes into this in advance of each year to try to ensure that we can fight our corner in every way possible when we get to the European Council. Much work goes into the preparations that go on in advance of that at attaché level at European level too.

It has significantly changed since Brexit happened. That has changed the pitch significantly. Ireland shared the majority of its fish stocks with the UK. Previously, that meant that we were all at the December Council meeting together when the UK was a member. We were there together thrashing it out, coming to a conclusion and having that negotiation and discussion at European Council level. Since the UK left - last year being the first time this happened - there now must be negotiation with the UK in advance of the EU member states coming together of the December fisheries Council meeting to finalise the position. Much of the discussion and negotiation is held with the UK on those shared stocks in advance of us coming together in December. That is still ongoing at the moment as I speak. We do not know yet whether there will be an agreement with the UK in advance of the December Council meeting taking place this Sunday and Monday. If there is not an agreement, we will have to set provisional TACs for the first quarter of next year based on the scientific advice and the maximum sustainable yield for each species. If there is an agreement, we can step that out and finalise it at the Council meeting next weekend.

Obviously, it is a different process now. The Commissioner keeps in close touch. The Commissioner, the Commission officials, my officials and I are all participating at European level in terms of our team there, feeding in our key priorities to that UK-EU negotiation. As matters stand now, we are not clear whether we will have agreement between the EU and the UK before next weekend.

Hopefully there will be, but it is a significantly changed situation compared to the situation pre Brexit. I thank Deputy Kehoe for his contribution and for his good wishes.

Jackie Cahill (Tipperary, Fianna Fail)
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On behalf of the committee, I thank the Minister and his officials for briefing us today on the sustainable impact assessment for the upcoming AGRIFISH Council meeting to set fish quotas. Like other members, I wish the Minister the very best of luck in achieving a satisfactory outcome for our fishing industry at the weekend. Hopefully, the negotiations will achieve the outcome that we all want to see.

I remind members that at 5.30 p.m. on Wednesday next, the select committee will be meeting to take Committee Stage of the Animal Health and Welfare (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2021.