European and United Kingdom representatives met in London on 19 May to finalize a wide-ranging bilateral agreement covering such topics as security and defense, trade, and access to lucrative fishing grounds.
Prior to this post-Brexit “reset” agreement, Irish Fish Producers Organization (IFPO) CEO Aodh O’Donnell said his members wanted “a rebalancing of the disproportionate quota transfers that took place in 2020, where we contributed 40 percent of the total value transferred from Europe to the U.K.”
However, the deal has largely maintained the status quo set in the original Brexit deal regarding fishing access, leading Irish fishing industry representatives to claim they’ve been betrayed by European reps.
“We have loudly and clearly outlined how damaging [Brexit] was for Ireland. It has already cost our industry an estimated EUR 180 million [USD 202.6 million] to date,” O’Donnell told SeafoodSource.
O’Donnell now wants Irish officials to demand a fairer deal for the nation’s fishers before the new agreement is due to come into effect next year.
“We call for a rebalancing of the Brexit burden. This requires an internal redistribution of the quotas,” he said. “The post-Brexit deal on fisheries was due to expire next year. While the details are yet to be established, the announcement on [19 May] of no changes to the current Brexit fishing arrangements is a serious concern to our coastal communities.”
O’Donnell has continued to highlight that Ireland’s waters comprise about 12 percent of E.U. waters, but the nation is allocated less than 6 percent of the bloc’s fishing quotas. Irish fishermen, he said, had hoped that a new E.U.-U.K. deal would go some way toward addressing the imbalances.
According to the BBC, in exchange for maintaining the status quo on fishing access, the U.K. was able to reduce checks on food exports to the E.U. – a loosening of bureaucratic red tape that such seafood sectors as the Scottish salmon industry have been calling for.
The deal also reportedly includes a joint EUR 428 million (USD 481 million) fishing and coastal growth fund to invest in new technology and equipment.
Nevertheless, Irish fishing stakeholders remain disappointed in the deal.
“Our fisheries sector is under real pressure – from overregulation and excessive bureaucracy to generational decline and unfair competition. We must act now to ensure its future,” Irish member of the European Parliament (MEP) Nina Carberry said in a statement sent to SeafoodSource.
Carberry is set to attend an upcoming meeting between E.U. Commissioner for Fisheries and Oceans Costas Kadis and Irish fishing representatives in the southern Irish city of Cork.
