S.I. No. 150/1991:

PLAICE (RESTRICTION ON FISHING) ORDER, 1991.

PLAICE (RESTRICTION ON FISHING) ORDER, 1991.

I, JOHN P. WILSON, Minister for the Marine, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by section 223A (inserted by section 9 of the Fisheries (Amendment) Act, 1978 (No. 18 of 1978), and amended by section 4 of the Fisheries (Amendment) Act, 1983 (No. 27 of 1983)) of the Fisheries (Consolidation) Act, 1959 (No. 14 of 1959), and the Fisheries (Transfer of Departmental Administration and Ministerial Functions) Order, 1977 ( S.I. No. 30 of 1977 ) (as adapted by the Tourism, Fisheries and Forestry (Alteration of Name of Department and Title of Minister) Order, 1987 ( S.I. No. 82 of 1987 )), hereby order as follows:

1. This Order may be cited as the Plaice (Restriction on Fishing) Order, 1991.

2. This Order shall come into operation on the 24th day of June, 1991, and cease to have effect from the 1st day of January, 1992.

3. (1) In this Order "the specified areas" means the parts of the sea described in the Annex to the Communication and therein referred to as ICES Division VIIf), and VIIg).

(2) In this Article "the Communication" means the Communication from the Commission of the European Communities on the description of the ICES sub-areas and divisions used for the purpose of fisheries statistics and regulations in the north-east Atlantic⁽¹⁾.

"ICES" means the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea.

(3) In any proceedings in which a contravention of this Order is alleged prima facie evidence of the Communication may be given by the production of a copy of the Official Journal purporting to contain the Communication.

4. Neither an Irish sea-fishing boat nor a person on board an Irish sea-fishing boat shall engage in fishing for plaice in the specified areas and the master of an Irish sea-fishing boat shall not cause or permit the boat or any person on board to engage in such fishing in the specified areas.

⁽¹⁾ O.J. C. 347/14 of 31-12-85.

5. (1) An Irish sea-fishing boat shall not have plaice on board within the specified areas.

(2) The master of an Irish sea-fishing boat shall not cause or permit the boat or any person on board to have plaice on board within the specified areas.

6. The master of an Irish sea-fishing boat shall not cause or permit the boat to be used in the specified areas for the transhipment or landing of plaice from an Irish sea-fishing boat.

7. (1) In a prosecution for an offence under Article 6 of this Order the following shall be prima facie evidence that the sea-fishing boat concerned was, at the time of the alleged offence, used for the transhipment or landing of plaice in contravention of that Article:

( a ) evidence that such sea-fishing boat had on board any books, papers or other documents from which it appears to the court that on the day on which the offence is alleged to have been committed plaice were received on board the boat otherwise than in the course of fishing,

( b ) any admission by any person who is for the time being the master or other person in charge, or another member of the crew, of such sea-fishing boat that at such time she was so used,

( c ) any other matter from which it so appears that such sea-fishing boat was so used or which in the opinion of the Court suggests, or tends to suggest, that such sea-fishing boat was so used.

(2) In a prosecution for an offence under Article 5 of this Order it shall be a defence for the defendant to prove that the plaice to which the prosecution relates--

( a ) were taken in the course of fishing that did not contravene Article 4 of this Order, or

( b ) were taken outside the specified areas.

8. (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Order, an Irish sea-fishing boat may have plaice on board and land or tranship plaice in the specified areas if the plaice did not exceed 10 per cent by weight of the total catch of all species of fish subject to quotas on board, landed, or, as the case may be, transhipped on any occasion.

(2) In this Article "quotas" means the State's share of the total allowable catch (TAC) fixed by the Council of the European Communities relating to certain species of fish in respect of the year 1991, or, as the case may be, each subsequent year thereafter.

GIVEN under my Official Seal, this 19th day of June, 1991.

JOHN P. WILSON,

Tánaiste and Minister for the Marine.

EXPLANATORY NOTE.

The effect of this Order is to prohibit fishing for, transhipping, landing or having on board plaice by Irish sea-fishing boats in ICES Division VIIf) and VIIg) with effect from 24th June, 1991 until 31st December, 1991, both said dates inclusive.

The Order, allows for a by-catch of plaice provided the plaice did not exceed 10 per cent by weight of quota species on board, landed or transhipped, as the case may be, on any occasion.