Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 325: To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food the extent to which each EU country including Ireland has restricted its fish catches as a percentage of its total catch in the past 10 years; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [27518/07]

Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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It is the responsibility of each Member State to manage their fisheries within the regulations set by Council and Commission regulations. I do not have available to me details of the various systems that apply in each Member State.

The annual EU Total Allowable catch and quotas regulation sets out for each Member State the maximum catch which may be taken for certain species in specific areas of the sea. There are three categories of species to which quotas apply. These are:—

Whitefish Species;

Deep Sea Species; and

Pelagic Species

In Ireland, representatives from my Department, the Sea Fisheries Protection Authority and Industry meet at least once a month to agree the quotas for whitefish and deep-sea species for the following month. Industry recommendations on management arrangements are accepted as far as possible.

In 2007, I have established particular management arrangements, in agreement with industry, setting catch restrictions for some 10 whitefish species, 4 pelagic species and 8 deep sea species. Of the particular stocks available to Ireland i.e. a particular species in a particular area, there are management arrangements in place for 17 of the 36 whitefish stocks, 11 of the 13 deep sea stocks and 7 of the 8 pelagic stocks. This would also be typical of previous years.