John Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)

I thank the Senator for raising this matter and giving me the opportunity to respond. Recent heavy storms have had an impact on the livelihoods of fishermen. Weather conditions are an integral element in the lives and routines of fishermen as Members of the House appreciate. Fishing is a weather dependent activity and, invariably, fishing patterns are disturbed on occasion each year by periods of bad weather such as that which has occurred recently. This does not understate the significance of its impact on those concerned, but highlights its inevitability for fisherman.

It is also not a phenomenon unique to Ireland. It is an accepted reality of fishing throughout the world. Accordingly, the issue was raised with my predecessors on a number of occasions during the years in line with the sentiments expressed by the Senator. I share his concern about those fishermen whose fishing activities have been hampered in recent weeks. There is, however, no specific funding mechanism available to my Department to alleviate financial hardship in the manner advocated by him.

Under EU aid rules, approval for financial assistance to the fishing industry in whatever form must be obtained from the European Commission. Accordingly, any question of introducing a compensatory measure of the type indicated would be considered within this framework. In the context of previous discussions between my predecessors and the Commission on the issue over the last decade, it has made it clear that it is fundamentally opposed to aid packages for any income lost during periods of bad weather. It has also affirmed that its opposition to such schemes extends, not just to the European Union, but also national Exchequer funds. Against this background, there is no realistic prospect of my being able to make provision to alleviate the financial hardship of fishermen suffering loss through damage to their boats and the consequent risk to their livelihoods. Private insurance arrangements should be made to cover such eventualities.