§ Mr. Owenasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what representations he has received from the Northumberland Inshore Fishermen's Federation concerning drift-net fishing for salmon; what reply he has sent; and what steps his department are taking to deal with the problem.
§ Mr. SoamesThe Federation wrote to the Ministry on 27th October last protesting against the statement made by the Secretary of State for Scotland in the House of Commons on 1st August, 1961, that a Bill was being prepared to restrict drift net fishing for salmon. The Federation said that they were prepared to discuss the situation with Ministry representatives and asked that, as a preliminary to such discussions, the98W Government would agree to defer the proposed new Bill. The Queen's Speech on 31st October announced that the Bill to deal with the sea fish industry would also cover drift netting for salmon, and the Bill was introduced on 2nd November. The reply to the Federation's letter set out fully the Government's reasons for its proposals on drift netting for salmon, and said that Ministry representatives would be ready at any stage to meet the Federation, should they wish.