A total of 18 fishing vessels registered in other countries were detained by the Irish authorities in the period 1 October 1998 to 31 October 1999. The detentions arose from suspected fisheries offences which included log-book infringements, illegal fishing, retention on board of undersized fish and failure to make mandatory reports. Fines and forfeitures ranging from £75 to £137,365 were imposed by the courts in 16 cases. One vessel was released without charge and a formal written warning was issued in another case.
Revocation of a fishing vessel's licence would, primarily, be a matter for the authorities in the country of registry, and I have no information that any licence has been revoked. I have, however, in keeping with the commitment to close co-operation, liaison and information exchange on fisheries monitoring and control with other countries, directed my Department to ensure that any convictions before the Irish courts are brought to the attention of the relevant authorities in a vessel's country of registry.