The EU Commission has a track record of rushing deals through just before holiday periods, according to Aodh O Donnell – and it seems it’s ready to strike an agreement with Iceland on the eve of Christmas, leaving no time for objections, external scrutiny or any pushback from the industry.
Ireland’s fishing sector is demanding that Minister Charlie MacConalogue bring to an immediate halt negotiations that would allow Iceland access to community waters, and particularly access to pelagic stocks in Irish waters. Irish Fish Producers Organisation (IFPO) chief executive Aodh O Donnell states that there is no apparent plan for Iceland to compensate the EU or Iceland for this access to EU waters.
The rumours have been going around for months, but were confirmed when Minister MacConologue briefed Irish industry figures this week, stating that talks between the EU Comission and Iceland have gone beyond exploratory talks and are in fact at an advanced stage.
‘Why was there no mention of this Icelandic arrangement at the EU Fisheries Council meeting in Brussels just last week?’ Aodh O Donnell asked, commenting that Ireland needs to lay down its red lines urgently to avoid a repeat of Norway’s access to arrangement to Irish waters that allows them catch three times Ireland’s quota.
‘This proposal has all the hallmarks of the flawed EU-Norway access arrangement dating back to 2005. This enables an armada of Norwegian vessels to come to plunder our waters while Irish vessels remain tied up at port. In 2024, Norway will fish almost 200,000 tonnes of Blue Whiting valued at circa €45 Million. Ireland’s fishing industry gets nothing of consequence out of this EU-Norway arrangement,’ he said.
‘A repetition of the Norway deal with Iceland is simply not acceptable. We have firmly rejected the poorly negotiated deal The Department of Marine has on offer. We aim to work in harmony with other member states, but we will not sanction further pilfering of our rich maritime resources by an outside country. We fail to understand why our Minister and his officials are hastening an agenda driven by the EU Commission and to the benefit of an Iceland as a non-EU member. Why have we not learned lessons from the past?’
Brendan Byrne, CEO of the Irish Fish Processors and Exporters Association (IFPEA) says that the proposal presented by the Minister ‘has only one winner and that is Iceland.’
‘The EU already concluded a deal with Norway on March 16th this year with huge access to Irish waters that has marginal benefits to Ireland. Instead, it allows other EU countries to fish for Atlanto-Scandian herring in Norwegian waters,’ he said.
‘The Irish Seafood sector has been drastically reduced in the last few years and the fleet has downsized as a result of the Brexit, where our fishing quotas were given away to the UK. Any additional access by foreign fleets such as Iceland will be fatal to the Irish fishing and seafood industry.’
Aodh O Donnell pointed out that Iceland has its own dubious history unsustainable fishing practices, and has a strong interest in access to stocks outside its own waters.
‘Iceland itself has pursued questionable fishing practices on mackerel and blue whiting, for years which would never be accepted within the EU’s fisheries policy. How has the Commission addressed that reality?’ he said.
‘The Commission must not proceed with a quick Christmas fire sale of our resources without considering Ireland’s interests. Any move to grant additional foreign fishing rights will be resisted fiercely by the Irish fishing industry. We call on the Minister and the Commission to call a halt to these rushed end-of-year talks and defer any commitment until such time as there is a balanced deal on the table, which reflects Irish Industry’s legitimate expectations.
