Irish fishing industry fights repeatedly for agreed EU rights

Two former Irish politicians say Ireland’s fishing industry has repeatedly had to fight for rights already agreed with the European Union, mbl.is reports. They also warn that even if Iceland secured special provisions in negotiations with the EU, other member states could refer disputed issues to the European Court of Justice.

Ireland formally began membership negotiations with what was then called the European Community in 1970 and joined on January 1, 1973.

Thomas Pringle, a former member of the Irish parliament and a member of its fisheries and agriculture committee, said Irish fishing was still developing at the time and was not as strong as Norway’s industry had already become.

However, the European Community assured the fishing industry that it would be protected within the bloc, Pringle told Morgunblaðið. Norway withdrew from the negotiations because it believed there would be no protection for its fishing industry, while Ireland continued after being told that everything would work out.

Pringle is from Killybegs in County Donegal, where Ireland’s largest fishing port is located.

Patricia McKenna, an Irish human rights lawyer who served as a member of the European Parliament from 1994 to 2004, agreed that Norway had chosen the more successful path. Agriculture was much more important to Ireland than fishing at the time, she said, while Norway understood the value of its fishing industry and knew that EU membership would not be a successful route for the country.

Ireland has had to defend agreed provisions

Pringle said Ireland had since been forced to fight for its fishing rights, including provisions that had already been agreed. He cited the Hague provision, which was introduced around the time Ireland joined the European Community.

The provision is intended to protect countries that rely more heavily on fishing than other countries. Today, it mainly applies to Ireland after the United Kingdom left the European Union.

When activated, the provision gives Ireland a higher quota allocation than other countries if the total allowable catch falls below a certain threshold.

Ireland has activated the provision several times in recent years, but Pringle described it as a constant struggle.

“Every time, we have to fight to retain the Hague provision. We spend all our time defending that position, so we do not even have room to negotiate other matters,” he said.

At the end of last year, larger EU countries, including France, Germany, the Netherlands and Poland, prevented Ireland from activating the provision.

Irish waters account for about 12 percent of the European Union’s fishing grounds, but Ireland receives less than 6 percent of the bloc’s total quota. Irish politicians and the fishing industry have repeatedly pointed to this disparity.