Fishing communities are due to stage a "day of action" today in protest at proposed reforms of the EU Common Fisheries Policy (CFP).
Whitefish vessels will remain in port, and among those fleets which have pledged support for the action are those at Greencastle and Killybegs in Co Donegal; Rossaveal, Co Galway; Dingle, Co Kerry; Castletownbere, Union Hall and Baltimore in Co Cork; Dunmore East, Co Waterford; Howth, Co Dublin; and Clogherhead, Co Louth.
Four organisations have planned the initiative - the Irish Fish Producers' Organisation, the Irish Fish Processors and Exporters' Association, the Irish South & West Fish Producers' Organisation, and the Killybegs Fishermens' Organisation.
The protest comes two days after a demonstration in several Channel ports by French and Belgian fishermen, supported by their counterparts from Britain, Ireland, Denmark, Italy and the Netherlands.
On Monday, EU fisheries ministers are due to begin a marathon council in Brussels which will involve not only annual quota-setting but also the controversial review of CFP.
The review involves scrapping State supports for new vessels, fleet reductions and effort limitation, while severe restrictions will be placed on cod fishing in the North Sea and Irish Sea.
The Commission is also supporting a legal opinion which challenges the right to retain the Irish Box.
The box was established on Iberian accession to the EU in 1986 to protect a biologically-sensitive fishing zone 50 miles off the Irish coast from the full onslaught of Europe's largest fishing fleet.
The fishing industry organisations have called on the Government to deliver a commitment made in the Programme for Government which stated that the Government would "press for fundamental reform of the Common Fisheries Policy with the aim of sustainable development, better governance, stakeholders' involvement, conservation, stock-building and maximising Ireland's access to fisheries".
The organisations have identified five key issues which must be secured in the negotiations.
These include a much-improved quota allocation, retention of the Irish Box, technical conservation measures instead of the crude instrument of fleet reduction, and a recovery programme to deal with the cod crisis in the Irish Sea.
They also say the policy reform proposals must include social, economic and regional aspects which take into account the peripheral nature of coastal communities.
