asked the Minister for the Marine whether he considers that the research staff of the Fisheries Research Centre at Abbotstown, County Dublin are capable of meeting the research needs of the traditional fishing and aquaculture industry; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
Written Answers. - Fishing/Aquaculture Research.
39.
Staff numbers at the Fisheries Research Centre of my Department — in common with most other areas of the Public Service — have been declining for some years now in line with the necessary policy of containment of staff costs generally. At the same time, remaining staff have been under pressure to provide services which are necessary to underpin, for example, the growth of aquaculture.
It is my objective to see to it that my Department is in a position in which it has the necessary scientific resources to support economic growth and the marketing of our fishery products whilst at the same time protecting human health and the environment. My Department is pursuing this question with the Department of Finance in this context.