I thank the Minister of State for taking the time to allow the dire situation concerning fishing quotas to be discussed in the House today. The more time that I, being from an inland county, spend studying this industry, its history, its policies and its recent challenges, the more I note the deep frustration that exists within it. I will be honest. Based on my own research and engagement, I must share the frustration. Fishing is not simply an economic activity; it is about identity, heritage and family. It is the backbone of many of our coastal communities. When we talk about fish, we are not just talking about quota numbers or regulations but about livelihoods from the sea to the shore. We are talking about fishermen and fisherwomen, processors, transport operators, engineers, net makers, fuel suppliers and the many small businesses that depend on a vibrant marine economy. I am happy that the Minister, Deputy Heydon, visited Killybegs last week and saw first-hand what the lack of quota means, not in theory but in reality. He saw the direct impact on boats tied up, on factories that echo with silence and that are under pressure, and on service industries that rely on activity in our ports. That kind of engagement matters. Seeing the situation on the ground gives perspective that no briefing paper can fully provide. Alongside the economic pressures, there is something that cannot be ignored. Over many years, a sense has grown within the industry that it is not always viewed as a partner in respect of sustainability and national prosperity but rather as a problem to be managed. Whether that perception is fully fair or not, it exists. That perception shapes trust. This perception exists because we are all part of one CFP in the EU. How can it be that it is applied differently depending on where a boat is registered? Take Irish boats compared with Dutch boats, for example. Ireland’s pelagic fishing and production is compelled to have the following, from what I can establish, under rules imposed by the European Commission: standard weighing equipment with a 30-minute zero-setting interval, state-of-the-art flow scales across the sector, and weighing systems that must be under CCTV, with footage live-fed to the competent authority. I saw the latter in Killybegs last year. The footage must be retained by each individual processor for six months. That involves a significant volume of CCTV images maintained by Irish processors. We are subject to a sampling plan, and weight estimation must be carried out under CCTV also. Between bringing fish ashore, weighing them and processing them, over a dozen different sets of documents, declarations, stock returns or electronic transport documents must be filled in and returned to the competent authority. Our fishermen are subject to all the full inspections and audits routinely but when I examine the position on Dutch factory ships in our waters, which are supposedly operating under the same EU rules, I cannot find evidence of flow scales and CCTV. I do not believe there is image retention for six months, and the same applies to sampling under camera. I do not know about cross-compliance. The ships are definitely not subject to routine inspection by the Irish competent authority and to any audit while fishing west of Ireland. Despite this, Ireland and the Netherlands are subject to the same CFP, as are other EU countries. In the past couple of weeks, the waters west of Ireland had a number of vessels from at least eight different EU and non-EU nations. What was noticeable was the lack of an Irish naval vessel monitoring all these foreign vessels in our waters. Also missing from our waters, from what I could observe this month, were European Fisheries Control Agency patrol vessels. However, they can appear in our waters in the couple of months when our own Irish vessels arrive to fish. When trust erodes between an industry and the institutions meant to oversee it, the consequences are serious. Morale declines, co-operation weakens and dialogue becomes strained. Ultimately, progress stalls. This year, opportunities for fishermen have been drastically reduced owing to a quota reduction of 57,000 tonnes, or 70%. As the Minister of State said, the biggest reductions are to mackerel quotas. This is not because of our fishermen’s activities but because of overfishing by third countries. All these reductions are impacting up to 2,300 jobs, not in big cities or towns but on the edge of this island, with an estimated sales loss of up to €105 million. Many in the sector feel that the decisions affecting their future are too often taken without sufficient understanding of the realities at sea or how critical it is to keep the product fresh and in grade A condition when it reaches the processors. They feel that regulations can sometimes be introduced in ways that are rigid rather than practical. They feel that enforcement can at times appear disproportionate rather than balanced. These concerns deserve to be acknowledged and not dismissed. The fishing community in Ireland has shown time and time again that it is prepared to comply with the rules and adapt to change. Sustainability is not the enemy of fishermen; it is their future. They understand better than anyone that without healthy stocks there is no industry, but sustainability must walk hand in hand with viability. One cannot come at the complete expense of the other. Where enforcement bodies such as the Sea Fisheries Protection Authority operate, they carry out an important and necessary role. Oversight is part of any regulated industry, but enforcement works best when it is seen as fair, proportionate and rooted in mutual respect. When that balance slips, it can create tension that serves no one. I have met the SFPA in person for only two and a half hours in committee, and an old saying came to mind that day: You could not like them if you reared them. There are genuine concerns being expressed about the operational impact of certain regulatory approaches, about quality implications when landings are delayed, about repeated audits disrupting processing schedules and about the reputational damage caused by cases that ultimately do not stand up in court. Even when matters are resolved, the stress and the costs remain. We cannot afford an environment where mistrust defines the relationship between regulators and the regulated, nor can we allow divisions to widen in ports like Castletownbere, Unionhall, Killybegs and the others across the island. What we need now is not confrontation but a reset: a reset in tone, a reset in engagement and a reset in how we view this industry. The people working within our Departments are public servants. Their role is to serve the interests of the nation, and the fishing industry is very much part of our national interest. It combines economically, culturally and strategically. It supports rural Ireland in ways few other sectors can. This Government has an opportunity and a responsibility to rebuild confidence. That means ensuring that policy decisions are informed not just by data but by lived experience. It means creating structured, meaningful dialogue between officials and industry representatives. It means ensuring proportionality, enforcement and transparency in decision-making. Most of all, it means recognising that the men and women who go to sea in dangerous conditions are not adversaries but citizens, taxpayers and custodians of a centuries-old tradition. The downturn we have witnessed in recent years has not been inevitable. Some factors are beyond our control: international agreements, Brexit and global market pressures. How we respond domestically, however, is entirely within our control. I thank my Seanad colleague Senator Manus Boyle for all his work in trying to make fishing front and centre for this Government. We can choose collaboration over tensions. We can choose reform over stagnation. We can choose to see fishing not as a shrinking legacy industry but as a modern sector capable of innovation, sustainability and growth. If we take that path, we can restore confidence in our coastal communities, we can create a system where regulation works for all without suffocating livelihoods, and we can ensure that future generations still see fishing as a viable and respected career. The frustrations within the industry are real. They should not be ignored but nor should they divide us. This is a moment to correct the course calmly, constructively and with the national interest at heart. Our fishermen and fisherwomen deserve fairness, our processors deserve stability, our coastal communities deserve opportunity and Ireland deserves a marine sector that reflects all that.

Sentiment score: 0.13