The Irish fishing industry is in the most dire situation it has ever seen in its history - - indeed one could say its in a terminal state - - however, that would indicate that its currently on ‘life support’ but that can’t be said considering its in the hands of a Government who have repeatedly shown that it cares little about Ireland’s coastal communities and genuine ‘support’ or protection has not been forthcoming for many years.
Editorial Comment
Cormac Burke, Irish Fishing & Seafood Alliance
One can only wonder at what point did the Irish Government take the strategic decision to kill off a traditional way of life of this island nation, because what we are experiencing at this time is more than just the result of years of neglect or mismanagement - - it is much more than conspiracy theory to say that we’re nearing the ‘end game’ of a carefully planned strategy aimed at the shrinking and eventual shutting down of a once thriving industry.
There are many theories - - a sell-out to reduce the size of the Irish fleet in Irish waters so that big offshore renewable energy companies could move in on the former fishing grounds? A bowing down to powers within the EU who see the vast fish resources in Irish waters and are doing deals with the Irish Government that the people actually paying the price are not being made aware of? Or, worst of all, the theory that Irish politicians are wilfully giving away Irish marine resources - resources that belong to the citizens of this nation and not to the Government - to the highest bidder, and to hell with the Irish fishing people who are seen as nothing more than collateral damage in this transition which will result in Ireland possibly becoming the only island nation in the world without its own commercial fishing industry.
What a wonderful ‘green’ and ‘blue’ economy Ireland will have - - with no mention of the fact that Irish fishermen have been beaten black and blue so these aims could be achieved.
There have been so many events in the past four years alone - - Brexit, when the EU forced Ireland to be the ‘fall guy’ in footing the bulk of the quota repayment to the UK; EU quotas distributed in such a manner that sees almost everyone aside from Ireland have a bigger share of the fish in Irish waters; access given to non EU nations to catch fish in Irish waters and in return, EU nations other than Ireland benefit; BAR money, given to Ireland by the EU to compensate for the losses as a result of Brexit, being used by the Irish Government solely in schemes to speed along a long-term reduction in the size of the industry and, despite claiming otherwise, not one single such scheme could be described as ‘progressive’ or ‘developmental’ - - all the while other EU nations used their money to genuinely financially compensate their industry and to adapt for the future.
Each of these, and many other, events were bad enough, but taken in total is death by a thousand cuts….
And in each of these events, the Irish fishing industry just shook its head in disbelief and depression and just carried on, not once raising a fist in anger as their compatriots in most other EU member states would have done.
Meanwhile Ireland is certainly not ‘adapting for the future’ - because, as far as our political leaders are concerned, there is no future for a fishing industry or the economies of rural coastal communities.
Well meaning politicians sitting in Opposition regularly raise points in parliament but are generally brushed off with a non answer or a derisive sigh much as a parent would do with a pestering child.
A vicious circle
But in reality, does it make any difference what party is at the helm of government when its clear that there will always be ‘other priorities’ - - as seen by a very angry fishing industry who are now witnessing with MEP candidates who promised much to the coastal communities at election time but then made sure to get on the EU Commission’s Agriculture Committee and left the Fisheries Committee without Irish representation for the first time in the history of the European Union - - the result of which will be our biggest fishing industry competitors casting votes on a new Common Fisheries Policy that will take even more of the Irish resources while the Irish fishing industry continues its slide to obliteration.
Only months after an Irish demersal fleet decommissioning scheme and the promise of better quotas for those still remaining, there is a genuine possibility that further reductions in EU quota allocations to Ireland next year and this is already raising concerns amongst some Irish vessel owners that yet another fleet reduction scheme might be needed.
Surely this is a repeat of the same old ever-decreasing circle that Ireland has been put through several times before? Reduce the size of the fleet to fit the available quota…. Then slowly reduce the quota until you’re back in an unsustainable position again, and then another decommissioning scheme…. And so on.
The legacy of such a system has only one obvious conclusion, and Ireland is being forced to edge ever closer to that cliff.
Meanwhile, the once mighty Irish pelagic sector that was the envy of all of Europe, is now a pale shadow of its former self - - forced to remain tied up practically nine months of the year while the reliant processing factories remain closed and unable to provide any employment due to lack of raw material.
With pelagic quota reductions and exports down 40% over five years, at what point will this sector become ‘unsustainable’ for those with heavy investments involved …. the same people who must look out to sea and watch pelagic fleets from other nations harvesting the wealth in Irish waters.
And the Irish inshore sector, which should be the backbone of any nation’s fishing industry (and is treated as being so everywhere except Ireland), is being managed in such a manner so as to kill off any effort at seasonal diversification into other species until everyone is herded into one single pen, until eventually that fishery folds or the market for it collapses . . . . And where is the ‘management’ of adapting for the future? No, this is more akin to people being ‘set up’ for failure - - remove all other options when you know that they must keep going to survive, then just sit back and wait for the inevitable collapse of an entire sector.
PR spinning a rosy picture
Never before in the history of this State has an industry been portrayed in such a manner as to be the exact polar opposite of the facts.
In translation, the Irish fishing industry may be ‘f*cked’ but the Irish ‘seafood sector’ is doing very nicely… so that’s the version of the story that’s being promoted.
With the importation of seafood into Ireland from as far away as Asia to then be rebranded as ‘Irish’, BIM are leading the public on a merry dance of a healthy industry providing high quality seafood produce, and at the same time, somewhat confusingly, continue to spend money to promote the fishing industry to young people as a career - - an industry that they can see with their own eyes is plummeting to the depths and that has in reality almost zero future for young people.
And, for anyone who still fails to grasp the reality of the situation of Ireland’s fishing industry, we have a fisheries ‘authority’ (SFPA) who seem to think they are answerable to no one, a Department of Marine who won’t interact with anyone in the industry, and a marine minister who refuses to have genuine and constructive communication with the industry representative bodies.
So it’s back to the original question - who or what is the actual driving force behind Ireland’s political strategy to sacrifice its fishing industry and the thousands of people who rely on it?
We are gone way beyond the thinking that this was just incompetence and poor management - - this is clearly a ‘winding down’ strategy.
Surely its time for this Government to ‘shit or get off the pot’ and to come clean on their actual marine strategy - - if deals have been done then tell us what they are and if the plan is to close down the fishing industry then just come out and do it, pay people their compensation and let them get on with their lives rather than this purgatory of slowly reducing their incomes and increasing their debts while trying to survive in an industry that is destined for planned assassination, and at least save Irish fishermen and processors the indignity of being laughed at by every other fishing nation in Europe as they are presently.
Our politicians have blood on their hands in their ‘management’ of an indigenous Irish industry and way of life, and we, this generation of Irish citizens, are leaving a sad marine legacy to those who come after us.
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