Sir – Despite Minister for the Marine, Simon Coveney's reassurance, marine fishing opportunities worth €250 million (Home News, December 18th) are anything but "steady". The value of seafish landings peaked at €352 million in 2001. Allowing for inflation, that figure has halved in the meantime. The value of our marine produce is currently much the same as it was in 1973 when Ireland entered the EEC, before fleet expansion all but obliterated our whitefish fisheries. We now enjoy an enormous fleet which has less and less to harvest.
Sadly, the Minister was, on this as on previous occasions, unwilling to act in accordance with scientific advice and we can anticipate further reductions in the value of this industry as well as the volume of landings in the years ahead. – Yours, etc,
EDWARD FAHY,
Drumree, Co Meath.