Cathal Crowe (Clare, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Next week’s European Council meeting will deal with the European budget and the recovery fund, but Irish eyes will certainly be focused very much on Brexit. It was such a political gamble in Britain and it is finally coming to the endgame. Following what was stated earlier today by Michel Barnier, the next 36 hours are the most crucial of all, as Britain continues to dig its heels in on a number of issues, but most strikingly on that of fishing. The Prime Minister, Mr. Johnson, has taken a very simplistic, one-dimensional view of fishing and fishing waters around his country and ours because most of the stocks, in particular of mackerel, are spawned in Irish waters before migrating in an easterly direction where they are caught at their most valuable stage of development in British waters. It is crucial that fishing rights are held as a red line issue by the Irish Government as these crucial talks enter their final stages.

I note as well that it has been reported in today’s newspapers that Michel Barnier has suggested that a transitional arrangement for fishing rights could be explored with the idea of a renegotiation at the end of the period, which would be linked at that stage to the overall economic agreement of both Brussels and London. It sounds rather watery to me, if Members will pardon the pun, and we need far more certainty for fishermen who are following this afternoon’s debate that their livelihoods will be protected at next week’s meeting and by the European Union overall.

If we look at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, farmers have very defined boundaries and livestock that one can see. Occasionally, they break out of a field but, by and large, one ends up with the same count of cattle year-on-year and one’s farming practice is very quantifiable. It is far more uncertain for fishermen. For them, there are no boundaries apart from international waters and they have to follow the fish wherever they are at a given time. Everything needs to be done to protect our very valuable fishing industry.

I will move on to the positive announcement we heard a week ago about the new six-times a week ferry service between Rosslare and Dunkirk. It is a fantastic development which offers connectivity to continental Europe. However, I have two small concerns. I went on the website and looked at the journey time between Rosslare and Dunkirk. From when one leaves Rosslare, it takes 24 hours to berth in Dunkirk Port. That is a considerable length of time. It is five or six hours longer than the current journey to Cherbourg. It makes what is already a long route for truckers even longer. One haulier suggested to me that this could in time result in sea cargo being charged per kilogram because of the amount of time taken in transit. I hope that can be looked at.

I am not expert on shipping but on the surface it looks like the fleets that operate between Ireland, Britain and further afield to continental Europe are rather aged and it may be that new ships are required. Potentially, with Brexit looming there may be Government support in that regard.

An airbridge for cargo should also be considered for Shannon Airport. I highlighted in this Chamber recently that Boston Scientific makes very expensive, high quality scientific products and they sit on the apron of the runway at Shannon Airport right beside aircraft but they are trucked overnight from there all the way to Rosslare. From there, they go to Heathrow and they are flown back to the United States. That is illogical. We are doing everything to protect sea cargo and we must also look at air cargo and how that is supported.

Fisheries must be the red line issue that Ireland does not budge on as we approach next week’s European Council meeting.

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