Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)

I thank the Minister and in particular his Department for genuinely seeking to deal with many of the concerns we raised on Committee Stage. This is another example of that. Having said that, I would rather see the sectoral interests of sea angling and river angling - which are two very different sports - being dealt with in their own right in new subsections (m) and (n) as set out in my amendment No. 19. However, I see that I am unlikely to get my way in this because the Minister has drafted his own amendment. It is a reasonable fallback position.

However, if the Minister speaks to a person who runs a sea angling business versus somebody who is engaged in trout fishing on a river, he will see that they are entirely separate businesses, industries and sports. They are as different as tennis and squash. Among the areas of expertise already included are fish processing, commercial fisheries, fisheries ownership and legal or regulatory affairs. I was determined to ensure that angling, which is an industry with enormous potential in terms of the tourist industry, in terms of developing a domestic industry on inland waterways and in terms of sea angling, which is an area that has not been properly regulated or promoted, was included. Moreover, I wanted river and sea angling treated separately and in their own right. However, I see where the Minister is coming from and, on balance, I am willing to accept his proposal.

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