Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael)

That is the proportionate response required. If further resources are required by the Naval Service to achieve this, so be it. The finger of suspicion points uneasily to the Irish fishing community. Regrettably, advertising campaigns embarked upon by the SFPA wrongly strengthened the overall perception that there is a criminal element in the Irish fishing industry. This is wholly wrong and undesirable.

The figures the SFPA's representatives showed to the members of the committee suggest the level of compliance of Irish fishermen with the stringent and difficult regulations under the new regulatory regime is extremely high. This message needs to be loud and clear.

I have a specific question for the Minister, Deputy Brendan Smith, whom I presume will be responding to the debate. Arising from last week's meeting in Athlone, the Minister announced two new initiatives, namely, a sea food marketing initiative and a new fisheries science research partnership, under the chairmanship of Mr. Jason Whooley of Bord Iascaigh Mhara and Dr. Peter Heffernan of the Marine Institute, respectively. Will specific additional resources be made available to Bord Iascaigh Mhara and the Marine Institute to fund these initiatives or is this simply a figleaf for the Minister to wave in front of the Federation of Irish Fishermen as a way out of a difficult situation? If the Minister is planning such initiatives on the cheap, they will not work. While they are worthwhile, they need to be funded.

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