IRELAND appears to have missed out on a deal to restrict Spanish flagship activity, which has been agreed this week between Britain and the EU. The deal, which was secured by the British Prime Minister, Mr Tony Blair, at Amsterdam this week during the EU InterGovernmental Conference (IGC), will not apply to Ireland unless it looks for it.
The Department of the Marine said last night it would be "working towards implementing the appropriate measures with the European Commission" as soon as possible, while the Minister for the Marine, Mr Barrett, welcomed the "clarification" from the European Commission, but his statement went no further than that.
The deal will permit Britain to force Spanish flagships to prove an economic link before being allowed to avail of British quotas. This may be achieved through landing half the catch in Britain or through having up to 50 per cent British crew on board or proving that the majority of fishing trips begin from a British port.
Currently, many of the 150 Spanish flagships on the British register fish off the Irish coast - both legally and illegally - where it is estimated that up to £2 billion worth of fish is taken by non Irish vessels every year. There are 12 flag ships, or "quota hoppers", on the Irish register.
Before the election, the Government pledged to act on the issue, and the Minister has said Ireland fully supports UK concerns about the loophole in the Common Fisheries Policy.
However, the Irish South and West Fishermen's Organisation (IS&WFO) said last night it was "absolutely incredible" that Ireland had not taken advantage of this week's initiative by Britain. The issue has become one of the more emotive in Britain's relationship with the EU.
"Two years ago, we were promised by the Department that there would be action to ensure these vessels demonstrated an economic link," Mr Tom Hassett, the IS&WFO secretary, said.
The Department of the Marine said the conditions would also apply to Ireland and this would be pursued. There was also a framework for flag ship restriction within the 1994 Fisheries Amendment Act, a spokeswoman said. However, Brussels sources said that Ireland had "not kept its eye on the ball" at Amsterdam.
The deal with Britain is based on an exchange of documents between Westminster and the European Commission before the IGC, to ease fears that Britain might veto any treaty. The Tory government had promised to use the veto if there was no commitment to tackling the problem, but the Labour government said it would not take such extreme action.
