Johnny Mythen (Wexford, Sinn Fein)
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Much has been said here. The crux of the thing is that when fishers see non-EU countries setting unilateral TACs; it is really galling. They see the likes of Norway which increased its mackerel quota by 55% over its quota. The Faroe Islands were much the same. On the back of this, there are dozens of new pelagic vessels coming on board which are 80 m in length and are very serious trawlers. This is a major threat. The EU should stand up to this because ICES has no jurisdiction over Norway, Iceland, Russia and other countries, which are also major fishers.

They are coming into Irish waters and taking our fish. We are making a plea that the Minister invokes the Hague preferences for mackerel. It is a tool for us specifically because we are an island and it is a fair tool to use. It is there for us, so why not use it?

On the sustainability impact assessment, we only got it today and there is a lot in it. There is a regional imbalance in the report, especially regarding my area, area 7, which basically covers the Irish Sea, Celtic Sea and south-west coast, including Dunmore East, Castletownbere, Kilmore Quay, Union Hall, Howth and Clogher Head. They seem to be taking a lot of the hit in that area. The figures for stocks are down the whole way. The impact on mackerel is 15.83 million. We need regional balance. Under the sustainability impact assessment, was anything taken into account for the fisherman? Have the wind energy structures that will be in the sea been taken into account, especially in Ireland? Have conservation areas been taken into account? Can fisherman fish in those areas, which will be vast?

New migration species are coming in, like the bluefin. We have the bluefin chart for the past ten years and, according to the science, they are multiplying and very abundant. It is a productive fish and I would like something done in that area. One of the most expensive fish we have in the sea is black sole. That is very limited so we should be looking at that species. It is a lucrative species.

What are not taken into account are the input and output of the fishermen. There was nothing in the sustainability impact assessment on climate change. The fisherman are like the farmers. If there is climate change and something happens, they cannot fish. This month, there were five or eight storms they could not go out in. They are losing their quota and things so something has to be done on that. That is a disadvantage. It should be built into our negotiations. Storms and hurricanes have come across the Atlantic Ocean from America in the past couple of weeks. They are coming regularly and affect our fishermen. There is no climate change element in the assessment whatever.