The December Fisheries Council, at which next year's quotas for Irish fishers were due to be set, has concluded in Brussels.
The negotiations have been ongoing since Sunday, and Ministers finally reached agreement this morning on fishing opportunities for Irish and EU fishers for 2024.
The outcome has been given a guarded welcome by the Killybegs Fisherman's Organisation CEO, Seán O'Donoghue.
"For pelagic stocks, the outcome is predominantly favourable notwithstanding the 9% reduction in mackerel when the Brexit effect is taken into account. We’ve secured a 23% increase in blue whiting, a 20% increase in boarfish, a 20% increase in North West herring, a 17% increase in albacore tuna and finally a 23% reduction in Atlanto Scandia herring.
"We’ve secured an increase in one of our key stocks, mackerel and while it’s wholly merited and overdue, it doesn’t undo the woeful impact which Brexit has had on our pelagic fisheries with a hit of up to 25% on our bottom line on this stock alone. We’ll therefore continue our campaign of 'burden sharing’ with gusto whereby all coastal member states share the pain of Brexit equally and proportionally.
"For the most part, the news is also positive for whitefish stocks in the North West with a very significant increase of just over 60% in haddock in 6a."
The CEO of the Irish South and East Fish Producers Organisation took a more mixed view.
"For whitefish in the Celtic Sea it’s poor. Haddock is down 31% and the whiting TAC is down from nearly 4,000 tonnes to 1,300," said John Lynch.
"We have to work on stock rebuilding programmes to get them back to acceptable levels. It will create hardship financially for fishers and there may need to be help to get over the loss of quota.
"On the plus side, monkfish and prawns are up slightly which will help although we are still short of sole in the Celtic Sea."
Speaking after the Council, Minister for Agriculture Food and the Marine Charlie McConalogue said securing an extra mackerel quota, worth €3 million euro is particularly welcome.
"This issue centred on the allocation and distribution of an EU mackerel quota historically linked to an agreement with Norway. This quota has been unallocated for the past two years and I was determined to reach a resolution on this issue.
"Mackerel is Ireland’s most important pelagic stock and the cuts due to the quota transfers under the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement significantly impacted our fleet. This new, permanent allocation of Mackerel quota, while not replacing all of the quota we have lost, will be worth approximately €3 million annually for Ireland’s fishers."
