Michael Colreavy (Sligo-North Leitrim, Sinn Fein)

It is good to have an opportunity to discuss this matter with the Minister.

There are two aspects to sustainability - the sustainability of fish stocks and the sustainability of the fishing industry. Three fundamental facts need to be taken into account in this regard: fish do not provide an infinite source of food for Ireland, Europe or the world; fishing practices, protocols and quotas have an impact, good or bad, on stock levels; and, from the perspective of the Government and the people, particularly those involved in the industry here, the Common Fisheries Policy, CFP, has been and is deeply damaging to our interests. This final point is the one on which there seems to be resistance on the part of the Government.

The CFP represents a very bad deal for the country. Some claim we cannot renegotiate it, but I disagree. In any case, it needs to be stated it has been a bad deal. We should use this fact as a fulcrum to increase Ireland's share of the overall EU CFP quota. Unless the Government begins to take this approach in negotiations, we will tinker at the edges of what is a very flawed policy which is damaging to the country's interests and the interests of those engaged in fishing. We could increase the share of the quota for the fishing industry to promote its future development and growth, while at the same time reducing the overall fish take in our waters. We may have missed opportunities in this regard in the past. It is ironic to hear Fianna Fáil speak about a bad deal being done because it had many opportunities to renegotiate and put on the boxing gloves, to quote the previous speaker, to fight for Ireland, but it did not do so. However, it is not too late to do so.

Approximately 5,000 people are directly or indirectly employed or employed on a seasonal basis in processing. That is not an insignificant figure, but it could be far greater if Irish fishermen had a fairer share of the catch in Irish waters and if there was more processing of the fish caught in our waters in this country. The potential of processing to add value to the fish landed here and aquacultural products is illustrated by the fact that the value of fish landed is doubled when processed. However, the vast majority of the fish caught off our shores are landed and processed abroad. We have, in effect, handed over a massively valuable natural resource which potentially will be under threat if the same system of management - or mismanagement - is allowed to continue in place and unless we regain sovereign control. That is impossible, however, at the current time due to the straitjacket of the Common Fisheries Policy. Indeed, the processing industry based on the Irish catch faces the same threat of being run down or even closed down. Fishermen agree that levels are dangerously low for some stocks but they disagree about the cause. To a certain extent, what is happening under the CFP is a bit like our economic situation - those who caused the damage are not being penalised. The small guy and his family on the shoreline who is trying to earn a living from the fishing industry is being hurt over this.

There has been some recognition of this injustice by some EU states but Ministers have also admitted that this State has received no support with regard to addressing the fundamental issue of the quota. The overall impression is of this State constantly having to fight a rear guard action to preserve whatever crumbs have been thrown our way. That in itself is reason enough, as one of the significant stakeholders in the sector, to demand that the policy is reformed in such a way as to ensure the interests of Irish fishermen are protected and enhanced.

It is significant that at the same time as this State was negotiating entry to the EU, so also was Norway. The CFP was drawn up during the talks as a means of allowing "equal access" to British and Irish waters for the fishing fleets of the then six member states - Italy, France, Germany, Belgium, Holland and Luxembourg. The Norwegians sensibly decided that such a sacrifice of their national asset was not worth it. They still have a thriving fishing sector.

The harm done by the CFP is generally recognised. In 2002, the review group which reported to the Forum on Europe referred to the "inequalities and injustices" inherent in the CFP. Perhaps it best summed up the situation when it declared that "Ireland has only a small piece of its own cake".

The 2004 estimate of the catch by the Irish fleet in waters around our coast was that it amounted to 15% of the total catch. Within the area under EU jurisdiction it was only 28%. In the same year it was estimated by the Marine Institute that the value of the catch in surrounding waters was €800 million of which €460 million was taken in the EU zone.

EUROSTAT statistics place the accumulated processed value of fish taken in Irish waters between 1974 and 2004 at around €200 billion. That is five times the value of the total transfer funds we received from the EU, mainly in CAP and structural funding, over the same period.

Had our fisheries been properly managed and developed under domestic control, they might have become a valuable resource that could have played a vital role in the economic development of the country. Instead the Irish fishery was squandered and is currently in mortal danger. Many believe, with some justification, that EU policy is deliberately designed to reduce the Irish fishing sector to insignificance, thus making it easier for the larger players to take over this business.

What is worse is that the intent of Brussels is being reinforced by the actions of the Irish State and its enforcement authorities. This is illustrated by the manner in which the sector is policed under legislative changes to both the Criminal Justice Act and the Sea Fisheries Act which, in effect, criminalised fishermen in a manner not applied to any other economic sector. The Minister's party and the Labour Party opposed this when in opposition. They promised to replace the criminal sanctions with administrative measures, so I trust this will be followed through. I expect it will be.

Another area relevant to the sustainability of fish stocks around our coast is the level of illegal fishing. There is anecdotal evidence to suggest that this is as much as one third of the value of the entire legal catch in Irish waters, but that could be a gross under-estimation. The reason why it is hard to come up with an accurate estimate concerns the inadequate policing Irish waters and foreign vessels there, in particular.

Irish fishermen believe they unjustly bear the brunt of fisheries protection surveillance and that, in any event, this State does not have the necessary resources to monitor the non-Irish fleet adequately. Nor does it seem that the states from which those vessels originate are particularly concerned about what their boats do while in Irish waters.

There is undoubtedly an issue regarding the sustainability of Irish fish stocks. Consequently, we need to take measures to ensure that those stocks do not reach a critically low level. Unfortunately, some people, including some of those who have made submissions, appear to take EU statistics at face value. They do not factor in the economic, social and national interest issues at stake in the fisheries sector, not just for Ireland but also for other member states.

It would be possible to balance both measures - fish stocks and economic sustainability - to protect stocks and reallocate quotas to ensure that Irish fisheries can survive and prosper. A number of key issues must take centre stage in the forthcoming negotiations. The Government must argue for a fundamental reform of the CFP to address inequitable distribution of quota and lack of national control. We must increase quota for Irish fishermen. EU member states have to understand that the original assignation was wrong, unfair and should not have been agreed by any Irish negotiating team.

The Minister needs to put the case for less centralised control, not more of it. Irish fisheries ought, to the greatest extent possible, be administered from this country and not from Brussels. I know the Minister will take this approach in the negotiations on the Common Agricultural Policy, and I agree fully with him. The Irish Government knows better what is best for Irish waters than any central European system.

There needs to be more consultation with the real stakeholders who are the fishermen, processors and others involved economically in the harbour-side of the industry. Their economic future is tied up in this sector.

I understand there are proposals to restrict Irish fishermen further, including the use of satellites to monitor small fishing boats, but the Minister should reject such proposals. It might seem like a sensible thing to do but it would simply add to the suspicion that Europe is intent on creating a hostile environment designed to drive fishermen out of the sector.

Those are the issues I wished to raise in this debate. Will the Minister negotiate upwards the quota for Irish fishermen at December's Fisheries Council meeting? How much input did fishermen and others involved in the industry have to the agreed management plan, to which the Minister referred?

I wish to echo the commendation of the Minister's stance on discards, which is both sensible and reasonable.

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