Order.

Excuse me - I am talking about the fishing industry. I have almost finished.

On a point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker. That is misinformation. For the past three months, Ards Borough Council has been asking for a meeting with the Minister and is still awaiting a reply.

That is not a point of order.

Nevertheless, it is a good point.

Order. Members have had their say in this debate, and I ask them to give the Minister the opportunity to respond to the issues raised. I request that no further points of order be made until the Minister has finished.

Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker. [Interruption]

I shall take one more point of order.

I do not know what the Minister is talking about. I have the manuscript, which I read to the House. I said

That is not a point of order.

It is. I have been misrepresented by the Minister. She has said that I said she would not meet those men. I never said those words in the House. Hansard will prove it. It is a point of order, and, Madam Deputy Speaker, you know that it is.

If I have misrepresented the Member, I most humbly apologise. I may have misunderstood him. Nevertheless, I want to make the point that, when requested, I meet people, talk to them and listen to them very carefully.

With regard to the meeting to which Mr Wells referred, which was with a representative of the industry accompanied by Mr McGrady, issues were raised. We did know that the recovery programmes were coming up. I also knew, as did the industry, that it would not be a one-year recovery programme, that it would take a number of years. I did give careful consideration to proposals that were put to me at the meeting - to which Mr Wells referred at second hand - and I gave a practical answer. My door is always open to the industry, and I shall continue to do everything I can.

I also wish to acknowledge the contribution made by the industry to the wider economy, and in particular to the cod recovery plan. Members will be interested to know that the European Commission has recently published its Green Paper on the future of the common fisheries policy. Over the next week I shall be launching a consultation exercise on that paper to ensure that the needs of the Northern Ireland fishing industry are factored into the debate at June's Fisheries Council meeting. I fully intend to be present at that and to play a full part.

I am bitterly disappointed at the Minister's response. Not once did she give any hope to the fishing industry in relation to the tie-up scheme of the three major ports or to the representatives of that industry who are sitting in the Gallery.

I made a point of order but was ruled out of order. It was a good point, however, and I shall make it again. Through the offices of Down District Council we have been asking for a meeting with the Minister for three months, and we are still waiting. When the Minister goes back to her office, perhaps she will ask one of her civil servants to scurry around the office to see whether that reminder from Down District Council can be found. It has been lying there for almost three months. Perhaps then we can have a meeting on behalf of the fishing industry which we, the council and MLAs represent.

Does the Member accept that Mr McCulla from ANIFPO also has made several requests for meetings with the Minister? A meeting was set up and then cancelled at very short notice. If the Minister checks with her diary secretary, she will find lots of ANIFPO letters on her desk saying, "Please meet us as soon as possible on this issue".

Madam Deputy Speaker, the - [Interruption]

Order.

The meeting requested by Mr McCulla was cancelled by Mr McCulla, not by the Minister.

I say categorically that that is not so. I was in touch with Mr McCulla concerning this matter, and I know that he was prepared to put himself out at any time, to cancel any meeting, in order to meet the Minister, so that is certainly not my understanding of what took place. I understand that Mr McCulla may be present in the Gallery. I know that he cannot - and will not - speak, but that is certainly my interpretation of my discussion with him.

The Member is aware that no reference should be made to people in the Gallery.

People in the Gallery may be invisible to you, Madam Deputy Speaker, but they are not invisible to me.

The right to fish is a core issue, and the Minister has not addressed it. Each and every one of the parties took time to deliberate on this issue, which is of great importance to the fishing industry.

I want to summarise some of the points made. In his introduction, Dr Paisley mentioned saving the fishermen from disaster and the fact that they need to earn a living but that there is was no room for them to diversify. Mr Savage, the Deputy Chairperson of the Agriculture Committee, also mentioned the need for a generosity of spirit between agriculture and fishing, and he underlined the immediacy of that need. We come back to that point all the time.

The next time we have a debate on fishing we shall just let Mr McGrady speak, as he says everything for the rest of us. Mr McGrady said that decommissioning would be an integral part of the package but not the whole package. One point he stressed was the short-term need - financial assistance should be made available now.

Over the years I have sat with Mr McGrady in the Ards, Newry and Mourne and Down Councils looking at the fishing industry. Mr McGrady was at the most recent meeting to discuss those important issues. We are looking at a long-term strategy, but the issue today is to do with the cod recovery plan and how we are going to assist the boats with the tie-up scheme.

I thank all Members for their comments. Mr Ford pointed out that assistance for agriculture is already there, but that that same assistance has not been available for the fishing industry. We must look at the source of that assistance. All in the Chamber implore the Minister to acknowledge the needs of the fishing industry.

My Colleague Mrs Robinson referred to the lack of food on the table. Is that not the very essence of this proposal for short-term financial assistance? We represent the people involved in the fishing industry, and they need something now to get them over the five-week period. Their bills continue to arrive and their debts still remain to be paid. The mortgages for the boat and the household bills do not simply stop. The Minister still does not have the compassion to understand the dire needs of the fishing industry.

Mr Hamilton hoped to move heaven and earth to try to help. That is what we want. We want enthusiasm, dedication and a positive approach from the Minister. She can do it, and she has the power to move on this problem. I implore her to look at those fishing matters and to do her best to address the question.

Allow me to return to decommissioning, which was requested by the fishing industry away back in the summer of 1999. Almost two years later we are finally looking at a possible decommissioning scheme. That was the only light to come out of the Minister's address. Decommissioning is only part of the package. Today we want a tie-up scheme.

Madam Deputy Speaker, is it possible for the Minister to stop talking to her Colleague and listen? Let us listen to the issues - we are not here putting in time. We implore the Minister on behalf of the fishermen of the three villages of Portavogie, Ardglass and Kilkeel to do something for them.

I am concerned that the Minister has chosen to make some cheap political points today. We are not here as political parties; we are here on behalf of the people we represent to try to fight for the fishing industry.

I am trying to be respectful of the Minister's position, but I must remind her that, as Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development for Northern Ireland, she has a responsibility to the fishing industry. We have not had one glimmer of hope for the tie-up scheme.

We need to conserve the fishing stocks, but the fishing industry also wants some help to try to overcome this problem. It is interesting that the World Wildlife Fund - a major conservation body - also agrees with the fishing industry. It has a joint plan. It wants to see the fishing industry going forward. Fishing needs to be conserved, and the World Wildlife Fund believes that financial assistance is vital for that to happen.

The Minister said that she would need to have meetings with her Colleagues in Scotland and Wales. Perhaps she could indicate how many meetings she has had on the issue with the other Assemblies and what progress has been made? It would be interesting to see whether any meetings have taken place on a tie-up scheme. Let us in Northern Ireland for once not be subservient to the other parts of the United Kingdom. Let the Assembly lead the way. Let the Minister lead the way on behalf of the fishing industry over the tie-up scheme.

Does the Member agree that the Minister could follow the example of her Dutch counterpart, who, within 24 hours of a protest in Rotterdam harbour, was able to find 14 million euros to help compensate her fishing fleet? Can the hon Lady not follow suit and do exactly the same? She would be applauded by the House if she did.

Madam Deputy Speaker -

I am quite happy to give way.

Do I have permission to answer that?

The Member has given way to the Minister, but I remind the Member that the clock is ticking and that we have only 10 minutes left.

I have some resource problems. The Member is talking about the Minister of a member state who has access to the Treasury of that member state. I am the Minister of a region and am not in the same position. I cannot obtain resources at the drop of a hat. I have to compete in the block for all of the resources, and there are many competing demands in Northern Ireland.

The Minister has indicated in correspondence with the fishing organisations that she has the wherewithal to make some assistance available. I ask her to deliver on the commitment that she has given to the fishing organisations and elected representatives. She can help the industry, but she must make the effort. The tie-up scheme is what we need, and we need it now. Short-term help for the whole industry is needed at the moment. We are all aware that plenty of money is available when it comes to other organisations such as North/South bodies. Let her make money available. I implore the Minister to take the gracious step and help the fishing industry. It is quite clear to the elected representatives that no constructive response has been forthcoming from the Minister today.

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