Martin Ferris (Kerry North, Sinn Fein)

I am stating a fact that the Atlantic Dawn, which was given 14,000 tonnes in quota, is currently fishing off the west coast. I have been reliably informed about this and it is using a national asset, its tonnage, to procure Irish fish for a Dutch consortium.

It is clear from the Ombudsman's report and all the other issues surrounding this scheme, including those to which I have referred, that a full investigation needs to be carried out into all aspects of the way in which the Lost at Sea scheme operated. My colleague, Deputy Ó Caoláin, other Opposition spokespersons and I met Emily O'Reilly in her office yesterday. She told us she did not take the decision to publish this report lightly. Her job is to investigate issues of public concern involving the State and the very least she deserves when it is found there are questions to answer is that they be taken seriously.

On the basis of the contribution of the Minister of State to this debate and the response of the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment on the Order of Business earlier, I regret that the integrity of an independent body is being challenged by the Government in the House. We need a full, thorough and, as Deputy Creed said, forensic investigation into everything in this report and we need to offer the opportunity to the Department, the former Minister and the current Minister to appear before the committee to explain the terrible wrong that has been done to the Byrne family, the way the scheme was prosecuted by then Minister and the Department, the way the scheme differentiated between people in coastal communities and why certain people received letters and were invited to submit their applications while others were totally and absolutely ignored. All the facts need to be established promptly.

The Department's decision to rule on the Byrne family's application was wrong. The reason the application was late was due to irresponsible advertising in fishing newspapers, which did not take into account that a family no longer involved in the industry might not become aware of the scheme. It is unbelievable that the Department said it did not have knowledge about the sinking and loss of life on the boat. The treatment of the Ombudsman by the Department and the Government in this tragic case was disgraceful and it has blatantly attempted to undermine the integrity of her office. The perception in our communities about the workings of the Department and the cronyisn associated with certain people needs to brought out in the open and people need a through and clean explanation.

Yesterday, I wrote to the Joint Committee on Agriculture, Fisheries and Food requesting that Emily O'Reilly and her team be invited to appear before it in order that we can conduct a forensic examination. The other Opposition spokespersons have done the same. This must be debated by a committee of the House and the people who did wrong in this case need to be brought to book.

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