§ MR. BARRIE (Londonderry, N.)To ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland whether he is aware that the fisheries of the Rivers Bann, Erne, and Foyle form the largest commercial salmon fisheries in Ireland and are valued under the Poor Law at over £5,000 per annum; that there is not a single person interested in salmon fisheries and resident in the province of Ulster who is a member of the special Committee who advise the fishery authority; and that the commercial salmon fisheries of the North-west of Ireland are, therefore, entirely unrepresented on this Committee; and whether, seeing that the owners of the fisheries of the Rivers Bann, Erne, and Foyle have repeatedly claimed that they should be given some representation on such Committee, and that such request has been 510 declined, he proposes to take any action in the matter.
§ MR. BARRIETo ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland whether he is aware that the fisheries in the Rivers Bann, Erne, and Foyle were the first in Ireland to be equipped with suitable hatcheries and are carried on in a businesslike manner; that they contribute large sums voluntarily to the funds of their respective boards of conservators for the protection of these fisheries over and above their legal obligations; whether, in view of the character, business habits, and skill of the owners and lessees or of the managers of these fisheries, he will take steps to secure their representation on the Committees; and will he say how many meetings of this Committee have been held within the last three years.
§ MR. BARRIETo ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland whether the views of the owners and lessees of the Rivers Bann, Erne, and Foyle fisheries, in regard to any proposed legislation which has come to the knowledge of the fishery authority or in regard to any question which affects in any way such fisheries, have been requested by the fishery authority; if not, can he explain why; whether he has received resolutions from the Salmon and Trout Association (England) and from the Irish Salmon Fisheries Protection Association urging that representation should be given on such Committee; and whether he will now undertake that representation will be given, or state why it should be longer withheld.
§ (Answered by Mr. Birrell.) The proposals for legislation referred to in the third Question were brought under the notice of the Department of Agriculture, who considered them in consultation with their advisory Committee on fisheries and with representatives of the milling interests. Neither the lessees of the private fisheries mentioned nor the owners of any other private fisheries were, as such, specially invited by the Department to express their views. The observations of the Department on the proposals are in possession of the Government and will receive due consideration 511 when an opportunity presents itself of introducing fishery legislation. The Department consider that the general commercial salmon fisheries of Ireland are adequately represented on their advisory Committee, and that that body is at present sufficiently large for efficiency. It was not the intention of the Department in forming it that private interests should be represented on it, but rather that the Committee should be composed of gentlemen generally experienced in fishery matters who, instead of specially advocating particular interests, would look upon the whole Irish fisheries as a national asset, and deal with questions submitted to them from that point of view. The Department do not intend to alter that basis of selection; but, if any vacancy should occur or rearrangement be contemplated, the question will be considered of appointing some person who, while possessing the necessary qualifications from the Department's point of view, will also have a special knowledge of the commercial fisheries of the north-west of Ireland.