Vol. 521 No. 2
33 Mr. Gilmore asked the Minister for the Marine and Natural Resources the response, if any, he has had from the EU authorities to his call for the deployment of observers on mackerel fishing vessels throughout the EU to tighten up on illegal fishing; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16676/00]
I am pleased to advise the Deputy that, in line with Commissioner Fischler's undertaking to me, the Commission has convened a meeting of specialist representatives of member states involved in the relevant pelagic fisheries.
The meeting will take place in Brussels on 11 July and will consider all aspects of control in the mackerel and other pelagic fisheries, including the scope for placing observers on boats. This is a welcome development and I assure the Deputy that the Irish representatives will press the case for an observer programme for the larger vessels in the EU pelagic fleet. I share the concerns the Irish fishing industry has expressed about high-grading and discarding on large pelagic boats and will continue to press for action to get to grips with this.
The presence of independent observers, as the Canadian experience has shown, can play a critical role in deterring potential conservation breaches such as discarding high grades and misreporting. I will take the opportunity to review the Canadian experience with the Canadian Fisheries Minister next week.
I will keep in touch with Commissioner Fischler on developments. I also discussed my concerns with my Dutch counterpart, Mr. Faber, during our bilateral meeting last month.
I want to see progress in this area. I am encouraged that the Commission is responding positively to my concerns. I will press for tangible co-operation from the other member states concerned. The meeting next month will be a useful next step and will be an opportunity to review the technical and financial implications of introducing a pilot observer programme.
I am pleased with the Minister's reply because he will be aware that I asked this question on 10 May, prior to the meeting with Commissioner Fischler. Will he indicate from where the manpower for these observers will be drawn? Will they be drawn from Ireland or other EU member states? I assume there will not be observers on every boat every day. What will be the criteria on board ships to implement this policing policy? I am satisfied that this will be a major step forward in improving the mackerel stock in the future.
Obviously the details of who will operate as observers, as well as the technical and financial details of the scheme, must be worked out, but I am pleased that Commissioner Fischler moved quickly on this when I mentioned it at my first meeting with him in Brussels when I took over in this job. It will have a significant impact on the conservation of pelagic fisheries.
