§ Mr. Wm. Rossasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will publish in the Official Report the criteria used in selecting those who are given salmon drift net licences on the waters controlled by the Foyle Fisheries Commission.
§ Mr. Adam ButlerThis is a matter for the Foyle Fisheries Commission. However, I understand that the commission issues drift net licences only to residents in the Foyle area, gives priority to those fishermen who have held drift net licences in the preceding years and restricts the numbers of licences to one per household. On conservation grounds the commission is unwilling, except in special circumstances, to issue drift net licences to persons not already particpating in the fishery.
§ Mr. Wm. Rossasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many salmon netting licences have been issued by the Foyle Fisheries Commission for the current season, and, of these, how many are drift nets; how many are drift nets and how many are fixed nets; and in each case how many licences have been issued to persons living in Northern Ireland.
§ Mr. Adam ButlerThis is a matter for the Foyle Fisheries Commission. I understand that net licences for 1981 have been issued as follows:
Total number issued Issued to residents in Northern Ireland Drift nets 114 25 Draft nets 224 44 Fixed nets 2 1
§ Mr. Wm. Rossasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, in each of the last five available years, how many salmon redds were counted in the rivers under the control of the Foyle Fisheries Commission; and, of these, what percentage were in rivers in the United Kingdom.
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§ Mr. Adam ButlerI shall reply to the hon. Gentleman as soon as possible.
§ Mr. Wm. Rossasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many letters he has received during the last 12 months from persons in Northern Ireland about salmon stocks and measures to preserve them.
§ Mr. Adam ButlerThree.