Simon Coveney: Weather delayed collection of fish

After months of questioning, Agriculture Minister Simon Coveney has confirmed that up to 230,000 farmed fish escaped from their cages into Bantry Bay during February’s storms.

These figures would make the fish escape the largest single salmon farm escape in history, according to local group, Save Bantry Bay, which is campaigning to stop the development of a €3.5m organic salmon fish farm at Shot Head, Bantry.

Mr Coveney admitted that only 20,000 out of 250,000 fish remain at Murphy’s farm at Gearhies, Bantry, after storms on February 1.