John Perry (Sligo-Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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Question 244: To ask the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources the steps his Department is taking to end the practice whereby valuable fish quotas are being wasted by his Department's insistence on weighing water as fish in Ireland's pelagic fishing posts; the reason more appropriate arrangements are not now made by his Department to weigh pelagic fish, taking advantage of the declaration in the EU Council decision at Christmas 2004 designed to facilitate accurate weighing of fish in factories rather than weighing water and fish at weighbridges. [7831/05]

Pat Gallagher (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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There is no question of any insistence on weighing water as fish. The measures to which the Deputy is referring are EU measures introduced in 2004 to strengthen control in pelagic fisheries as a consequence of concerns about illegal landings right across Europe. As I have previously advised the House, the requirement to weigh fish will continue this year.

Following on from the Council and Commission declaration which I secured at last December's Fisheries Council, the Commission has recently brought forward informal proposals which are currently being evaluated at a technical level. These proposals are designed to provide for the weighing of fish after transport from the port of landing while ensuring full control and accountability. Any such arrangements and rules require to be set at EU level and accordingly the issue of my Department implementing such arrangements on a national basis in advance of the completion of that process cannot arise.

I continue to work closely with the industry to progress this matter and I believe that the current technical evaluation can be completed at an early date following which appropriate and satisfactory revised arrangements can be implemented. However, until such time as new arrangements are agreed, measures have been put in place since early January in our designated landing ports in Ireland that allows for the weighing of fish and the subsequent addition of refrigerated seawater. This addresses to a significant extent the quality and other concerns expressed by the industry last year.