A delegation of representatives of the fishing industry and from Ireland are in Brussels on today to make the case for Ireland’s fishing fleet to be allocated a fair share of the fish in Irish waters.
Sinn Féin MEP, Chris Mac Manus, who is hosting the visit, said: “Ireland has some of the richest fishing grounds in Europe within its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ- 200 mile limit).
“But due to the decades old Common Fisheries Policy of ‘relative stability’, access to a fair share of the fish and wealth from our own waters has been denied to our fishing fleet and fishing communities.
Pictured from left to right, the Donegal members of the Irish fisheries delegation to Brussels
Brendan Byrne, Cormac Burke, Pádraig Mac Lochlainn TD, Chris Mac Manus MEP, Gerard Kelly, Cara Rawdon, Frank McClenaghan, Aodh O’ Donnell
“This is not sustainable and goes against the wider principles of the Common Fisheries Policy and the European Union in terms of reducing carbon footprint and of the economic and social linkage between those catching the fish and the communities closest to those fishing grounds.”
The representatives are hoping to immediately commence the process of reallocating all of the annual unused/ uncaught fish quota within the Irish EEZ from the fishing fleets of the relevant EU Member States to the Irish fishing fleet under the principles of ‘zonal attachment’.
Sinn Féin spokesperson on Fisheries and the Marine Pádraig MacLochlainn TD said: “It is estimated that the Irish fishing fleet is only allocated about 15% of the fish in Ireland’s EEZ every year. And there is no return allocation of fish quota in other EU Member State’s EEZ to the Irish fishing fleet.
“Even when the annual fish quota allocated to fishing vessels from other EU Member States has not been used, this quota is still not allocated to vessels from the Irish fishing fleet based in the communities closest to those waters.
“This is deeply unjust and has only worsened since Britain left the European Union in recent years.
“That is why we have invited a delegation of some of the leading voices for Irish fishing communities from around our country to come out to Brussels and meet with the politicians and European Commission officials who are making these decisions and to make the case for urgent change.”
