Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)

I believe this will provide significant assistance to the farming community in improving the viability of holdings through consolidation.

Fishing Industry

The fishing industry in Ireland is facing major challenges at present. Earlier this year, the Cawley report provided a blueprint for the future of the fishing industry. It confirmed the need for restructuring of the industry, including a significant reduction in the number of boats in the white fishing fleet. My colleague,the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Deputy Mary Coughlan, successfully secured EU state aid approval for a decommissioning scheme for fishing vessels. Given the importance of the fishing industry and the role it plays in our coastal communities, I am allocating €21 million for this scheme to begin next year.

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