Efforts to reach deal in mackerel quota saga

The Irish mackerel industry was looking forward to a massive increase in the amount of fish it can catch but fear it could all be whittled away by the demands of Iceland and the Faroe Islands.

Fisheries Minister Simon Coveney received support from several countries for his insistence that Irish fishermen will not be sacrificed to allay the demands of the non-EU islands.

There will be a crunch meeting in London next week when it is hoped that a deal in the long-running dispute will be reached during negotiations between the EU, Norway, Iceland and the Faroes.

Ireland has about 35% of the total EU quota worth up to €140 million a year, making it the country’s most valuable fish and contributing to about 10 processing factories.

The Icelandic and Faroe Islands took up to 52% of the total allowable catch for this year compared with 5% in 2006 — possible because of the fish moving further north due to global warming.

The EU shares the waters with Norway, which has 35% of the catch that in total is worth abut €1bn a year. Now the European Commission is proposing that Iceland and the Faroes get a quota of about 24% between them.

Mr Coveney fears this would all come out of the EU’s share and wants Norway to cede part of its quota to the two islands. He received the support of France, Britain and a number of other countries.

He told the meeting: “Any new offer to Iceland must be jointly agreed with Norway on the basis of equal burden sharing. Iceland must not be granted access to EU waters as a part of any deal.

“Critically, any deal should provide a fair and justifiable quota share for Iceland, it must also protect the interests of EU member states like Ireland who have relied on this fishery for over 40 years.”

He warned that any disproportionate deal with them would lead to continued and increasing pressure from Greenland and Russia for a larger share of stocks in the future.

MEP Pat the Cope Gallagher, who is on the European parliament’s fisheries committee, pointed out that the latest scientific advice recommends an increase of 64% of the total allowable catch of mackerel.

This should be a boon to the Irish fishing industry but, Mr Gallagher warned, it must not be used to give Iceland and the Faroe Islands an unjustified percentage share.

“My clear understanding is that the European Commission is anxious to secure a deal at any cost, regardless of the consequences for the Irish pelagic industry.

“This must not be at the expense of Irish fishermen,” he said.