Former Irish MPs warn EU quota guarantees cannot be trusted

Former Irish parliamentarians Patricia McKenna and Thomas Pringle say Ireland’s fishing industry has been unable to rely on important provisions agreed with the European Union, mbl.is reports.

About 12 percent of the European Union’s waters belong to Ireland, but the country receives less than 6 percent of the quota allocated by the bloc.

Ireland has nevertheless long been able to rely on the so-called Hague provision, which gives the country a smaller quota reduction than other member states if the overall catch limit falls below certain thresholds.

The provision has been activated several times in recent years. However, larger member states intervened at the end of last year and rejected Ireland’s request to activate it.

McKenna and Pringle say Iceland should be cautious about relying on special provisions remaining sustainable over the long term.