Trevor Sargent (Dublin North, Green Party)

I have had a number of opportunities to address this House and the Seanad on fisheries matters of late in a challenging time for our fishermen. I have welcomed each of these opportunities as it is my firm belief that it is our collective duty to engage in informed debate to enlighten the policy formulation process for the betterment of the industry.

The subject of this debate is the December Agriculture and Fisheries Council which will, as usual, be dominated by discussions on the Commission's proposals for setting of total allowable catches, TACs, and quotas for 2009. There is enormous complexity attached to these proposals and the time afforded me does not allow me to examine the issues in full detail. The Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Deputy Smith, has been already actively engaged on many fronts since the publication of the Commission's proposals on 7 November, including active discussions with industry and a bilateral meeting with Commissioner Joe Borg in Brussels last Thursday, 5 December.

The Minister, Deputy Smith, has also had discussions with Mr. Huw Irranca-Davies MP, UK Minister for the Natural and Marine Environment, Wildlife and Rural Affairs, on areas of common interest and with a view to work closely with him at this Council. In general, however, the proposals do not paint a pretty picture and give bad news across many stocks, suggesting cuts to many of the stocks of economic importance to the Irish fleet and additional conservation measures that will impact significantly on the activities of the fleet. I share the concerns of the industry as to the clarity, rationale and appropriateness of some of the proposed measures.

I want, however, to dispel any misunderstanding in this matter. The proposals are, to a large extent, based on scientific advice from the International Council for the Exploration of the Seas, ICES, and I will return to this topic in detail later. The indications are that many of the stocks targeted by our fishing fleet are in a poor state from a sustainability point of view. It is important to understand that the Commission's overall goal in proposing these measures is to deliver a viable and sustainable European fishing industry into the future. The cuts do not target Irish fishermen specifically. Quotas for individual member states which have an interest in a given stock are reduced proportionately, in other words, the concept of relative stability, where each member state continues to get its fixed percentage of the available catch, is maintained.

There has also been some positive news, namely, with regard to mackerel, where agreement was reached at the coastal states meeting in London on 30 and 31 October, with the overall TAC going up by 33% from 456,000 tonnes in 2008 to 605,000 tonnes in 2009. This will result in the net Irish quota, after deductions for the payback for undeclared Scottish landings, going from approximately 45,000 tonnes to 62,000 tonnes. One caveat on this stock is regarding the discussions on the EU-Norway agreement, the third round of which is in progress in Oslo this week. There have been suggestions that mackerel could be used to balance the fishing opportunity exchange this year. We are defending our strongly held belief that mackerel cannot form part of the transfer as we do not gain from the exchange of opportunities.

I do not want to underestimate the challenge facing us in successfully defending our stance on the matter, but assuming we are successful, the increase in the mackerel TAC will be maintained and available to our fishermen. This is greatly significant for Ireland and is the reward for Irish fishermen adopting tough, responsible fishing practices for this stock. In value terms using an estimated price per tonne of €1,200, this results in an increase of over €20 million to the pelagic fishing sector in 2009, from €54 million to €74.4 million.

I acknowledge the efforts of the Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Deputy Killeen, at the November Agriculture and Fisheries Council in successfully negotiating for the exclusion of the Celtic Sea from the new cod recovery plan, which will also be given effect in the TAC and quota regulation. This was of major importance for the Irish mixed whitefish fleet as the restrictions suggested would have been disproportionate. It was also a recognition of Ireland's position that a one-size-fits-all approach to stock recovery was not appropriate for the Celtic Sea. We are committed to working to strengthen the state of this stock, which is of importance to the Irish fleet. We are supportive of the appropriate conservation measures for Celtic Sea cod, such as spawning area closures which were originally proposed by fishermen, and are delivering positive effects on stock levels in that area.

I said earlier that I would return to the question of the science and the scientific advice. As legislators and administrators we have to be informed by the expert advice, though not necessarily accept blindly the advice given. Many questions asked about the veracity of specific scientific data or lack of it at any given time. We must always be conscious of the fact that the fisheries resource is the bedrock of the seafood industry and scientific advice on the state of the fisheries resource will dictate the level of fishing opportunities that will be available. Our objective must be to halt the decline in many fish stocks so as to protect the future of our fishermen and coastal communities.

I will give a brief flavour of the state of some of the key stocks from an Irish perspective. Scientists are concerned about the overall state of the fisheries resource. There are serious concerns about the state of the cod, whiting and haddock stocks off the west coast of Scotland. The Commission proposes a closure of these fisheries for 2009. Irish Sea cod has collapsed and shows no sign of recovery. However, the haddock stock in the Irish Sea is increasing. The Celtic Sea cod stock remains below the desired biomass level and there is major concern about data quality available for scientific analysis.

The stocks of hake, monk and megrim are important to vessels operating from the south west and west coasts of Ireland and scientists consider these stocks to be in a stable state. However, because of the poor data available for analysis, the Commission considers it important to limit expansion of these fisheries and so the proposed 2009 TACs will be reduced by 15%. There are many plaice and sole stocks in the waters around Ireland but for many of these stocks there is limited scientific data and the state of the stocks is unknown. There are serious concerns about the Irish Sea sole stock and the introduction of recovery measures is recommended.

Nephrops stocks, which we know as prawns in the fishing harbours of my area, Fingal, are of vital importance to the Irish fleet with very important grounds in the north Irish Sea, Celtic Sea, Aran grounds and the Porcupine Bank. These fisheries support many coastal communities. Scientists consider the stocks generally to be in a stable state but there is concern about the stock in the Porcupine Bank. The stocks of mackerel and horse mackerel are healthy, while there are serious concerns about the herring stocks in the Celtic Sea and off the Donegal coast. The blue whiting stock is decreasing and the 2009 TAC will be severely cut. Sharks and rays are important species in the ocean ecosystem and are vulnerable to overfishing. There are serious concerns about the decline of the spurdog population. The introduction of a new total allowable catch for rays is not the preferred option from a scientific perspective for sustainable fishing of this stock.

As I have said, the proposed regulation is complex and detailed, and I hope I have given a flavour of that. I cannot address every issue here; however, I do wish to elaborate on some of the key issues we face in the ongoing discussions leading into what will be tense and protracted negotiations at Council.

The system of the Hague preferences stems from a European Council decision in 1976 that recognised the development needs of peripheral coastal regions whose populations were heavily dependent on fishing activity. The system simply grants us an improved share of our traditional stocks when they fall below a certain level. The system also benefits the UK. Each year at the December Agriculture and Fisheries Council the concept of the Hague preferences may come under attack from a number of other member states, and this year will be no exception. The application of the Hague preferences is of paramount political importance to Ireland. Our strong view is that the system reflects a formal political agreement of all member states which forms a foundation stone of the Common Fisheries Policy and a critical element of the system of relative stability. We do not believe it is in any way appropriate to challenge this integral element of the CFP at each December Council. The proper place for any debate on the Hague preferences is in the context of the overall CFP review debate, which is scheduled for 2012.

The Minister, Deputy Smith, met with Commissioner Borg in Brussels last Friday to discuss issues of major importance to Ireland in advance of the Council. The Hague preference system was top of the agenda, and the Minister informed the Commissioner in a very forthright manner that we would be expecting him to maintain the consistent position of the Commission on the matter and defend this fundamental element of the Common Fisheries Policy.

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