Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

It is seven years since the Government decided to bring in a very good policy at the end of December 2018 to stop trawlers over 18 m in length fishing within the six-mile limit. A significant part of that policy was to stop the unsustainable fishing for sprat. This is the seventh year of the policy. Unfortunately, because of the Government's or the Department's failure to carry out the consultation process properly, the policy was held void. We were promised by the previous Minister and Government that another policy was imminent and would be rolled out. It is absolutely unacceptable and unsustainable that trawlers are still fishing unsustainably and catching sprat.

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