I wish the Irish runners in the Cheltenham Gold Cup every success.
I fully share the Deputy's concern about the impact of last month's bad weather on the fishing industry and I understand the frustrations and difficulties which resulted from these weeks of relative inactivity. The situation is being closely monitored and, while weather conditions are currently good, the impact of another sustained period of bad weather would require further review. Any State aid for a national fishing fleet must be approved by the European Commission under the relevant EU legislation. The Commission is opposed to State aid to compensate for weather conditions and has previously confirmed that EU fisheries funding for exceptional events does not include bad weather.
The Commission opposed the national compensation scheme following the winter of 1993-4 and only accepted it because of the exceptional severity and duration of bad weather that winter and the fact that the aid was funded entirely by the Exchequer. The bad weather this winter has not been comparable to the severe conditions in 1993-4. It would not be appropriate or productive to approach the Commission at this stage on the basis of the meteorological evidence to date.
Meteorological Office statistics indicate that, apart from last month, the wind conditions to date this winter from November to March have not been as severe as in some other years. Overall, it appears that this winter was slightly better than average. While many vessels were tied up last month, the fishing conditions in December and January were better than normal for that time of year. The anticipated level of fishing effort during the coming weeks should assist fishermen in making up for the bad conditions experienced in February.