Irish fishermen to get higher quotas

Irish fishermen have been granted higher quotas in a number of species for next year following the latest annual EU negotiations on catch limits.

The Irish fishing industry has secured a total package of almost 200,000 tonnes of fish for 2007 following two days of talks among EU fishing ministers in Brussels.

The most notable increases are a 23% rise in haddock quotas, a 20% rise in hake, 14% in prawns and 7% in monkfish.

However, fishermen will have to reduce cod catches by 14% due to ongoing scientific concerns about declining stocks of the species in European waters.

Fishermen’s organisations say they are happy with the outcome of the negotiations.