Brendan Howlin
Ceist:105 Mr. Howlin asked the Minister for the Marine and Natural Resources when he will introduce legislation to tackle the growing problem of clashes between fishing vessels at sea. [12926/00]
Written Answers. - Fishing Fleet Protection.
John Perry
Ceist:109 Mr. Perry asked the Minister for the Marine and Natural Resources when the Government will ratify the 1967 North Atlantic Convention on Fishery Operations. [12899/00]
Michael Finucane
Ceist:159 Mr. Finucane asked the Minister for the Marine and Natural Resources the status of the investigations by him regarding the powers of intervention available to the Irish authorities in respect of incidents involving Irish trawlers outside the 12-mile limit where deliberate ramming by other trawlers and damage to fishing gear are involved. [12898/00]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 105, 109 and 159 together.
On the basis of recent discussions between officers of my Department and of the Office of the Attorney General, I have instructed my Department to prepare legislative proposals in this area which I hope to put to the Government very soon. These proposals would, inter alia, involve giving the power of arrest to the naval authorities in circumstances where a vessel is suspected of having caused malicious damage to another vessel or its gear. It is envisaged currently that such powers would apply both within the 12 mile territorial limit and on the high seas outside that limit.
The proposals to which I have referred are based on the provisions of the United Nations Law of the Sea Convention, 1982, and the question of ratifying the 1967 convention does not arise at this stage.