Although the Irish Sea still faces huge challenges, things look a bit better now. After strenuous lobbying, backed by credible scientific and economic evidence, the cut in the prawn TAC was limited to a more absorbable 3% reduction; functional unit TACs were seen off as an unjustifiably bureaucratic approach; and a review of the EU Cod Management Plan was secured, against mounting doubts over its relevance to conditions in the Irish Sea.
