Press release from the Department of Communications, Marine and Natural Resources
Dublin,, Friday 24 March 2006

Marine Minister, John Browne T.D., today announced that following careful consideration he has decided to adopt the recommendations made to him by the National Salmon Commission. This will involve reductions in the quota available to both commercial fishermen and anglers in 2006.

Minister Browne also re-iterated the Government's commitment to fully align
with the scientific advice provided on the management of the wild salmon fishery by 2007.


Minister Browne said :

"The Wild Atlantic Salmon is an important natural resource belonging to all the Irish people, it is therefore clear to me that the preservation of the species must be our top priority,"

"I recognise the considerable efforts made by the commercial fishing industry over the past number of years to build a sustainable fishery and they have endured large cuts in the quotas available to them. I realise that these reductions have caused them difficulty and that full alignment with the scientific advice will likely compound these problems.

For these reasons I have decided to appoint an independent group to examine the implications of the new regulations for the commercial sector in 2007 and beyond and to make recommendations on the options available to address any financial hardship that may arise.

The group will be made up of three independent experts. Padraic White, former Chief Executive of the Industrial Development Agency and author of the De-commissioning Report on the Irish Whitefish Fleet, Prof. Tom Collins, chair of the National Rural Water Monitoring Committee and John Malone, a former Secretary General of the Department of Agriculture and Food.

I will be asking this group to determine the scale of financial loss which may be experienced as a result of the measures that need to be imposed to fully align with the scientific advice and the precautionary principle." (The full terms of reference of the group are included below)

Needless to say this is an extremely complex issue and I have endeavoured to ensure that the working group have as broad a remit as possible to enable them to study all the factors involved. I expect they will consult broadly with all the stakeholders involved in the sector and take account of the socio-economic effect on vulnerable rural communities of any changes.


Minister Browne concluded :

I also expect them to examine the extent to which those stakeholders who would be the main economic beneficiaries of more salmon being returned to the rivers, should contribute to any scheme, whether in cash or in kind including improved tourist access. In addition to tighter bag limits and the adoption of catch and release methods of angling, this could take various forms including financial contributions, reassessment of fishery rates and improved and guaranteed tourist access to fisheries."


Given the depth of work involved it is not expected that the working group will present their report to the Minister until the end of August 2006. The report of the group will be made available to stakeholders in the sector and the general public.

In 2005 the total catch for all salmon was 146,823 at about 17% above the scientific advice of 122,305. [Commercial 122,044, Angling 25,643(estimate)]

Accepting the recommendations of the National Salmon Commission and the National Fishery Managers Executive, the total allowable catch will be 91,367 for the commercial sector and 15,000 for angling, fully complying with the National conservation limits established by the Standing Scientific Committee.

The draft regulations make provision for the restriction on the annual angling bag limit of 10 fish per angler for 2006; the NSC had recommended a limit of 15 fish per angler. "I believe the lower level to be necessary to contain the total harvest by anglers to 15,000 fish, given that there is no appreciable reduction in the average angling catch (25,000) over the past five years and in the interest of balanced treatment of all stakeholders" said the Minister.

The regulations also provide for the introduction of compulsory catch and release from 1st September in 8 districts that are not meeting conservation limits. Minister Browne pointed out that the fishery managers have argued that there is an absolute need to conserve stocks in those districts. Given that commercial fishing ceases in the majority of districts on 31 July, there is no reason why anglers should continue to kill fish up to the end of September.

The Minister added, "While I am relying on the assurances given by both the commercial fishing interests and angling representatives that they are fully committed to all measures associated with the conservation and protection of our valuable wild salmon stocks, I have nevertheless asked the Fisheries Boards to ensure that the new quotas are fully enforced.

Members of Expert Working Group on Salmon:

Padraic White
Padraic White served as Chairman of the National Strategy Review Group on the Common Fisheries Policy from December 1998 until December 2003. This Group developed strategies and policies for the review of the Common Fisheries Policy. During this time the Group published seven documents setting out detailed recommendations to improve the policies that govern fishing in European waters. Padraic also chaired the North West Pelagic Force in 2000.

Padraic is the former Managing Director of the IDA and is the current Chairman of the Railway Procurement Agency (RPA). He is also Chairman and Director of several private companies and a number of public sector enterprise committees. He was instrumental in the establishment of the Dublin based, Northside Area Development Partnership.


Prof. Tom Collins
Professor Tom Collins is Head of the Education Department at NUI, Maynooth. Prior to that he was Director of the Dundalk Institute of Technology.
Professor Collins has written extensively on the theme of participatory development and has been active in local development work for many years. He is a member of the Board of Pobal, the Irish local development agency, and is chair of the National Rural Water Monitoring Committee.


John Malone
John Malone is a former Secretary General of the Department of Agriculture and Food.


Terms of Reference for the Working Group to Examine the Implications of Alignment with the Scientific Advice for the Commercial Salmon Fishing Sector in 2007 and Beyond


Purpose of Expert Working Group
The Working Group will make recommendations on the options available to address any financial hardship arising for individuals involved in commercial salmon fishing from full compliance with the scientific advice by 2007.


Remit of the Working Group
The specific remit of the Working Group will include:


The Working Group will be expected to draw on the reports already generated through the National Salmon Commission, by the National Fisheries Managers Executive and the Standing Scientific Committee and engage in appropriate consultation with relevant stakeholders.


The Working Group will report to the Minister within a five-month timeframe.

For further media information, please contact:-
Grace Cappock, Press Advisor: Office: +353 1 678 2440 / Mobile: 087 202 4971
Ken Cleary, Press Officer: Office +353 1 678 2441 / Mobile: 087 905 9618
Email: press.office@dcmnr.gov.ie