Tentative step towards saving cod

THE agreement between EU fisheries ministers on quotas and fishing limitations for trawlers has angered people in the industry, but it represents a tentative step towards saving the cod from extinction.

Marine Minister Dermot Ahern can hardly be blamed for putting a gloss on a fairly bleak scenario which, for the first time, will limit fishing days in the Irish Sea.

He argues it will only affect 15 boats out of 140 on the Eastern seaboard and says he won quota increases of 8% for the industry here.