Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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It was all dealt within the seafood task force looking at the criteria under the Brexit adjustment reserve. There were three segments, namely, the inshore fleet - the smaller boats -that does not have any quota and therefore did not lose quota, the middle segment where there was decommissioning and tie-up and then the larger segment, where there was liquidity in recognition of the fact that, for example,in relation to mackerel, we lost 25% of our national quota. That was all fully considered as part of the task force as to what would qualify for the Brexit adjustment reserve.

There is no doubt but that boats in the middle segment, that is, the whitefish fleet and in the pelagic sector, which is the larger sector, got a lot more Brexit funding because they were fishing stocks which were quota species and saw the quota being permanently cut. When you come to the inshore sector, however, which is primarily based on non-quota species such as crab and lobster, there was no basis for paying funding directly there because it did not impact them. They could catch as much as they could catch as long as it was available.