Pat Gallagher (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)

Since January, officials of the Department and I have held a number of meetings with fishermen and processors from the south east who are engaged in the scallop industry. I am keenly aware of the problems facing this sector which are not related solely to fishing effort limits but also to additional challenges posed by high fuel costs and the impacts of implementing the mandatory EU safety requirements for some of these boats.

The capping of fishing effort is one of the key ways in which we can conserve fish stocks for the benefit of future generations of fishermen. Scallop stocks off our south-eastern coast have declined in recent years. The decision in 2003 to limit fishing effort on scallops as well as for demersal stocks generally was driven by sound conservation reasons and was supported at that time by the Irish fishing industry.

The need to achieve a better balance between fleet size and available fishing entitlements has been apparent for some time, particularly in the whitefish sector for which I launched a decommissioning scheme in April. Last Friday, I announced a review of the overall need for decommissioning. This will involve an assessment of the need and extent of the decommissioning requirement for the various demersal and shellfish fleets, including scallops and mussels. This review is to be completed by the end of June and will give an important overall perspective. It will examine the various issues, including eligibility for decommissioning aid where strict EU rules apply. I cannot pre-empt the outcome of this review. It is a planned and structured approach and I look forward to receiving the report at the end of this month.

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