The Fianna Fáil MEP for Connacht-Ulster, Mr Seán Ó Neachtáin, has called on the Taoiseach to raise the Irish Box issue at this week's EU summit in Copenhagen.
The retention of the 50-mile fishing zone is a matter of "real national concern", the MEP has said. Mr Ahern must ensure that Ireland's case is made at the summit, which opens on Thursday.
The summit of EU leaders takes place just days before the final round of fisheries talks in Brussels on the review of the Common Fisheries Policy. The Irish Box, which was established to protect sensitive fishing grounds when Spain and Portugal joined the EU, is one of a series of issues which will be discussed at the fisheries council from Thursday.
Fisheries ministers will also have to deal with total allowable catches and quotas during a marathon session which is expected to run throughout the week.
The EU Agriculture and Fisheries Commissioner, Dr Franz Fischler, has made it clear he intends to meet the deadline for the controversial fisheries policy review in spite of concerted opposition to several aspects of the package.
Fishing industry leaders here have emphasised that the current proposals threaten the livelihoods of thousands of Irish people and they intend to announce a "campaign of action" tomorrow to safeguard the industry and fish stocks.
Industry representatives have warned of "catastrophic" consequences if the Irish Box is dismantled and have said that any such move makes a mockery of conservation.
While the Government and industry are presenting a united front here, there is anger within the British fishing industry over its government's apparent acceptance of the proposals which will result in widespread job losses.
The Scottish chair of the European Parliament's fisheries committee has said that the EU proposals to close down fishing areas are part of a "federal agenda", which will ensure that France dominates farming, Germany dominates heavy industry and manufacturing, that Belgium will have its "centralised bureaucracy" in the form of the Commission and that Spain, with the EU's biggest fleet, will dominate fishing.
