Why have there been so few arrests of foreign boats in the recent past? The circumstances have not changed, nor have the abuses, but there have been far fewer prosecutions and arrests in 2002 than heretofore and fewer than necessary. Foreign fishermen are shooting unmarked nets into the water with dire consequences for other ocean users, particularly our fishermen. Without buoys, these nets are virtually invisible in the water and can be tens of miles long. Not alone is this greedy and illegal, it is also dangerous for others working the area. The nets are left for days before being checked and recovered with the result that Irish fishermen have to either trawl around them or risk having their own gear fouled by them. They are both plundering our stocks indiscriminately and without any thought for legality let alone conservation and at the same time depriving Irish boats of a livelihood for at least some of the time.