“IS&WFO calls for immediate halt to foreign fishing trials with illegal nets”

The Irish South and West Fisherman’s Organisation (IS&WFO) have called for the immediate halting of fishing trials, which are currently ongoing, whereby French gillnet vessels have been given the green light to use gill nets, off the Irish coast, which are under the minimum EU specified size.

IS&WFO Manager Jason Whooley said "The use of these illegal Hake nets under the guise of scientific research is a disgrace. The mesh size specified in European Regulations is 120mm yet these vessels have been granted a six month trial to use 100mm mesh by the EU Commission and the French Authorities. How a case can be made for fishing with small mesh for a species, which until recently was the subject of a Recovery Plan, is beyond me. Through the North Western Waters Regional Advisory Council, we have been working with the Spanish, French and UK industry on the whole gill-net issue yet we were kept completely in the dark on this development. We have contacted directly our Minister and the French Authorities to demand that these trials are immediately halted."

3rd August 2006