Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to take part in this debate. I thank my colleague, Deputy Pringle, for outlining the situation and the report from the committee. I will not repeat what he said but I will place the matter in perspective. Less than two months ago, on 17 September, the Dáil passed a motion which I had the privilege of moving, regarding development of a policy for the islands. The Minister mentioned that but he failed to mention the effort that had to go into getting that motion passed. I cannot remember whether the Minister voted for it but it passed by an overwhelming majority. It highlighted the absolute lack of policy for the islands. That is why we were forced to table that motion on 17 September. When speaking on that night, I pointed out that, going back to 1996, a report was published of the interdepartmental co-ordinating committee on island development, a strategic framework for developing the offshore islands of Ireland and so on. There were many good ideas, none of which were enacted. There was another interdepartmental committee in 2019. I welcome it but it was certainly not what my colleagues or I wanted. It certainly does not have proper representation. The Minister of State, Deputy Kyne, used unfortunate language when he said: "Having islanders on this committee could be contrary to what Members wish for because I do not believe there will be openness among officials regarding the preparation of their plans." That was the statement on the night. That seems to be a significant problem in officialdom. Listening to people and then taking on board what they are saying appears to be problematic.

The Minister has given us the background. I read the recent opinion and I see some of the difficulties with the Bill as it stands but these can be rectified. I mentioned the original report from 1996. In 2014, we had a detailed report which again set out recommendations. Deputy Pringle has referred to recommendation 10, that we should explore the feasibility of a heritage licence to be issued by the Department for rural, coastal and island fishing communities. Deputy Pringle has pointed out that we are not just focusing on island communities. We hope it would be developed for coastal communities too. That is the background from 2014. Another committee then looked at this, as Deputy Pringle noted, in November 2018. Nothing has been done in a hurry. Everything has been slow and tortuous. In the meantime, the population of the islands is declining and it is difficult for people to have hope.

I notice one of the submissions to the committee came from Comhdháil Oileáin na hÉireann, which is from Galway West, which I represent. It is a huge constituency with huge variation, and includes the three Aran Islands and Inishbofin. We had somebody from Inishbofin make a presentation, as well a person from the Irish Islands Marine Resource Organisation. I recognise both of the names, and one is from Inisheer in my constituency.

In addition, I see a contribution from Dr. Ruth Brennan, who pointed out the difference between equality and equity and forced me to think about that. I hope the Minister will also be forced to think about that point, namely, what is equality and what is equity? She gave a very good anecdote that explains it. Equity means a lot more than equality. When we look at the islands, we want to deal with them in an equitable manner. All this motion is asking for is that we let the Bill go to Committee Stage, and that we look at the difficulties in the Bill and work them out, in recognition of what the islanders have asked for over an extraordinary length of time. Why? It is because it is very good for the economy to have islands that are functioning, with people living there on every level, which I went into on the last occasion I spoke about this issue.

It strikes me as a little arrogant that the Minister talked about the Bill being well-intentioned but ill-informed. Perhaps there might be ill information on the Government side as well. I am only quoting the committee, which had the experts in. Its report states:

Recitals 19 and 20, Common Fisheries Policy (Regulation 1380/2013)

...Small offshore islands which are dependent on fishing should, where appropriate, be especially recognised and supported in order to enable them to survive and prosper.

Recital 19 states: "Member States should endeavour to give preferential access for small-scale, artisanal or coastal fishermen." In addition, the Irish Islands Marine Resource Organisation very helpfully pointed out that the preamble to the Common Fisheries Policy states, at paragraph 20: "Small offshore islands which are dependent on fishing should, where appropriate, be especially recognised and supported in order to enable them to survive and prosper." Equally as helpful, page 4 of the committee report tells us there are precedents for doing this, and it points out a number of international case studies where local communities have found ways to sustain their traditional fishing methods. It mentions, in particular, the Shetland Islands, the Koster region in Sweden and Lira in Galicia, Spain. It would appear that the absence of information is on the Government side in regard to policy. There is a very limited interpretation of regulations to suit the fact it does not want this Bill to go through.

The Minister mentioned policy changes and I welcome those that have happened in regard to the exclusion of certain boats within the six-mile limit. Of course, it begs the question why it took up to now to do that when it could have been done before, in recognition of what fishermen have been saying for a long time. The second point the Minister itemised was in regard to communication, which he said had improved. That again begs the question of why communication could not have improved many years ago. We do not need to go back too far but certainly back to the 2014 report, which made certain recommendations.

I have no hesitation in supporting the motion, although I foresee problems with the legislation. I read the reasoned opinion but I think there is a much bigger picture and a challenge to the Government to make a reality of its words. If we want a sustainable island community, we urgently need a policy. In the formation of that policy, we need to hear the voices of the islanders. If they cannot sit on an interdepartmental committee, then that committee is not right and we must change it so we have the people who matter. Every report I read in preparation for this debate and the debate last September said the voices of those who are going to live on the islands are the most important voices. That is who we should be listening to.

In regard to the producers' organisation or the group that attempted to comply with the rules and play by the regulations, it did not succeed and it was refused on 20 September 2019 because of the criteria. I understand there might be mandatory criteria that would have excluded it if it did not reach that level but, at the very least, that should be all very apparent to any group that is coming forward to form an island fisheries producer organisation. At the end of the day, we want small groups, small businesses and co-operatives on the ground. They are the backbone of any country.

I hope the Minister is listening and I hope, at the very least, this Bill will go to Committee Stage and that the Minister will meet the groups on the ground. He mentioned forums. Clearly, they are not adequately reflecting the opinions on the ground. The Minister is shaking his head, but we would not be here at 6.45 p.m. on a Thursday unless we were reflecting what people are telling us on the ground and asking us to say it in the Dáil.

See this speech in context