The Irish South and West Fish Producers’ Organisation (IS&WFPO) says it intends to initiate a constitutional challenge to the penalty points system for fishing offences introduced by the new government.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin signed the system of administrative sanctions into law late last month, even though his party had opposed it.
Killybegs Fishermen’s Organisation (KFO) chief executive Sean O’Donoghue criticised Mr Martin’s move, made during an “interregnum” when he was holding the agriculture, food and marine brief temporarily.
Mr O’Donoghue said that the system signed in by Mr Martin on August 28th by statutory instrument does not allow for the right of appeal, except through a court of law, and penalties can still remain on a licence if the case is thrown out, he said.
A Fianna Fáil motion annulling a statutory instrument (SI) on penalty points, and calling for a fairer system was carried by 80 votes to 54 on May 29th, 2018.
Twelve days before, a letter of formal notice of infringement proceedings had been issued by the European Commission, due to Ireland’s failure to introduce the EU-wide system under the Common Fisheries Policy.
The IS&WFPO said it was “not just an attack on fishermen and women”, but “an attack on everything we as a society hold dear, on our independence and on our sovereignty”.
“Even under the European Charter of Fundamental Rights that form part of the Treaties of the European Union, the articles below do not comply with what we believe to be Taoiseach Michael Martin’s unconstitutional law,” it said, referring to the legislation’s failure to allow for adequate appeal.
“It is an objective of the Treaties of the EU that a fisherman’s standard of living should be improved,” it said in a statement yesterday.
The Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine did not respond to a request for comment.