FISHERMEN from Castletownbere will feature in an investigative documentary which looks at the serious impact of the EU post-Brexit trade deal on the livelihood of fishing communities along the west coast of Ireland.
The documentary, Iniúchadh TG4 - Anfa Mara, will be presented by journalist Kevin Magee, who hears first-hand from fishermen in Castletownbere, alongside some from Greencastle and Machaire Rabhartaigh, Donegal, Rossaveel and Inis Mór, Galway and Dingle in Kerry on how their incomes are being squeezed post Brexit.
The fishermen are angry that an estimated 15 per cent of the value of the Irish fishing quota has been taken from them and assigned to the UK as part of the Brexit trade agreement reached between the United Kingdom and the European Union, known as the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) that came into force in January 2021.
Reddy Ó Faoláin has been fishing out of Castletownbere for the past 30 years.
He said: 'The quota was much bigger last year. It’s this year the cuts in the quotas have been introduced that we gave to England and that has a huge impact on the margins the boats make in a month. We used to have 25 tonnes and now we only have 18 tonnes. That's two thirds of your take home pay gone every week.
'No one is able to lose two thirds of their pay and not say anything about it. We are all saying the same thing - give us a little bit of the quota, that’s what we want. We’re not looking for handouts, we just want to fish and feed people.'
Spiddal native Tomás Ó Féinneadha is a crew member on the Sarah David which is currently tied-up in Castletownbere.
He said: 'We were landing fish yesterday. We're going to be docked now for three months. We’ve no quota left. There’s nothing at all left. It's scandalous. We don’t have much of a quota and we can't do anything about it.'
Tune in to TG4 this Wednesday, April 24th at 9.30pm to watch.
