The Minister of State for the Marine says he expects to initiate the State's first decommissioning scheme for whitefish vessels within the next fortnight.
The €45 million scheme is expected to be signed off by the European Commission shortly, and will allow owners of up to 25 per cent of the whitefish fleet's total capacity to quit the industry voluntarily, with compensation.
Decommissioning schemes have been in place in a number of EU states for some years, but this will be the first State-supported Irish programme.
Mr Pat the Cope Gallagher was speaking after an EU fisheries council in Brussels earlier this week, where the fuel price crisis was the main item for discussion by member states. No additional funding for short-term measures, such as temporary tie-ups of vessels, was made available by the EU fisheries commissioner Joe Borg, but Mr Gallagher said he was looking "urgently" at the potential of short- and long-term measures.
These could include financial support for more energy-efficient and sustainable gear and equipment within national funding parameters, he said.
He also called for a co-ordinated European re-structuring plan for the fishing industry to cope with rising fuel costs and declining fish stocks. "We cannot assume fuel prices will fall back to early 2004 levels; in fact, we must assume that high fuel prices are here to stay."
Earlier, the Minister of State met Irish fishing industry leaders who have called for urgent action over the fuel price hike - a rise of more than 70 per cent since last January. Jason Whooley of the Irish South and West Fishermen's Organisation and Seán O'Donoghue of the Killybegs Fishermen's Organisation said they were satisfied the Minister was "fully committed" to putting short- and long-term measures in place.
