Who are "authorised officers" under this section? Are they bailiffs on a river or members of the Garda? Gardaí have powers when they are accompanied by bailiffs. There is no provision to punish an authorised officer for committing an offence. I do not wish to go over old ground but Members will recall during the last Seanad there was complete co-operation in the House to pass legislation which dealt with authorised officers who had abused their position on a certain regional fisheries board.
Without going into detail on that issue, it created a problem for the Department of the Marine for a long time. An officer had to be appointed to the board in question and it was then disbanded. I hope this issue is relevant under this section. Who are authorised officers? Must they be accompanied by gardaí? If gardaí witness the commission of a fishery offence they may have powers.
There is no provision for the punishment of an authorised officer. Fishery offences, including the catching and confiscation of salmon, are possibly open to abuse by a lone authorised officer. I know many such officers and they are top of the list in my book. Section 2 provides for punishments for offences but in the case of an authorised officer such punishments do not apply. I would like the Minister to clarify this issue.
We all co-operated with the former Minister of State at the Department of the Marine, Deputy Gilmore, when he introduced legislation dealing with authorised officers. The problem has been sorted out and the Minister knows what I am talking about.