‘A fair recovery for Irish fishermen’ – conference
Sinn Féin MEP Liadh Ní Riada will host a major fisheries policy conference in Dungarvan on Saturday, October 24. The event will bring together fishermen, fisheries experts and government agencies to discuss a strategy to develop Ireland’s fishing industry.
Liadh Ní Riada MEP represents fishermen at Kilmore Quay, Co Wexford and from other harbours on the EU fisheries committee.
Photo Gillian Mills
“It’s long past time that our fishing industry was given the attention it deserves. Sinn Féin supports a sustainable fishing industry that acts as a driver of the local economy in coastal communities,” remarked Ní Riada.
“As Ireland’s only representative on the EU fisheries committee, I have endeavoured to be a proactive voice for fishermen in Europe and in Ireland. I am working to ensure that the voice of coastal communities and those who depend on the sea for their livelihoods will be heard.”
The conference is targetting a cross-section of the industry to feed into a “comprehensive national policy and will mark Sinn Féin’s commitment to rejuvenating a sector that has been long neglected by successive governments,” she said.
“Unlike the curent and previous governments, Sinn Féin will continue to campaign domestically and abroad on fisheries issues and our proposed policies, such as the Single Boat Payment scheme which I’ve been highlighting with the European Commission.”
In government, Sinn Féin would press for a renegotiated financial instrument to accommodate the scheme under a “truly reformed Common Fisheries Policy,” she said.
Sinn Féin is also exploring legal avenues regarding illegal fishing by foreign trawlers and how they can be deterred, “especially larger, super-trawlers that are facilitated to buy a disproportionate amount of quota and then over fish these quotas. This disparity is reaping devastation on fish stocks and smaller fishermen”.
Ní Riada confirmed that in conjunction with colleagues in GUE/NGL [Confederal Group of the European United Left/Nordic Green Left], she has applied for funding for a public insurance pilot scheme for fishermen adversely impacted by external factors such as natural disasters and recovery plan closures.
A Fair Recovery for Irish Fishermen takes place in Lawlor’s Hotel, Dungarvan, on October 24.
