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The Irish Fishermen’s Organization says the Brexit deal concluded today has “failed” Irish fishermen.
Under the agreement, Ireland will have to return 25% of the fish we catch in UK waters compared to 80% originally sought by the UK.
But the Killybegs Fishermen’s Association said the 25% figure was not an improvement over what was discussed last week and that it had been unacceptable to them.
The organization’s chief executive, Sean O’Donoghue, said the mackerel market would be devastated.
“Despite a seismic effort to correct the imbalance in the proposed agreement in recent days, it has not changed enough and our highly developed mackerel fishery is losing dramatically,” O’Donoghue said.
“While all the details of the text are not yet available, very careful scrutiny and analysis will be required.
Make no mistake, we will seek compensation from our EU colleagues to correct this serious mistake.
“We will not accept this. Furthermore, we fully expect the Irish government to provide the necessary compensation in the form of a transfer of the mackerel quota from the other EU coastal states which, pro rata, have seen a much less severe impact on their respective mackerels. fishing ”, he concluded.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin has admitted that he was given some ground when it came to fishing.
“We managed to minimize the damage in Europe in terms of the impact on our fishing sector.
“There were some concessions at the European Union level in this regard, but we will work with the fishing community to support the fishing community.”
The Irish Farmers Association (IFA) has said that the agreement reached between the EU and the UK is a relief, but that it will pose significant difficulties for the Irish agri-food sector.
IFA President Tim Cullinan said the result leaves “little reason to celebrate.”
Mr Cullinan also said that the long-term implication for our food exports could be the flooding of the UK market by cheap imports.
“The UK can now make deals with other countries, particularly countries in South America where there is the possibility of importing lower quality beef into the UK, which in turn would depress the Irish beef market.
“Obviously we have concerns about that but I guess we have to look on the bright side.
“What we are seeing here tonight is that there will be a continuation of the level playing field.”
Cullinan said there are real concerns about how non-tariff barriers will affect Ireland’s ability to keep trade flows moving, citing scenes in Dover this week where hundreds of trucks were stranded for several days.
He said green routes for food exports should be prioritized after January 1.
“The Government and the EU must have the € 400 million support fund for Irish farmers ready in the new year to address any market disruption. The € 5 billion EU Brexit adjustment fund must also be in place. available, “he said.
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