Warnings of fish stock extinction after EU deal

OVER the next six months up to 10% of Ireland’s fishing fleet will be decommissioned in one of the most drastic changes to the country’s fishing industry in modern times.

Declining fish stocks and the sudden and dramatic rise in the price of oil are to blame for this change which will affect the 15,000 employed in the industry including 6,000 working on board the country’s fleet of 1,400 vessels.

The industry is worth about €380 million a year to the country’s economy but is vitally important for Ireland’s most economically disadvantaged regions along the west coast.