EU fisheries ministers have agreed to introduce Total Allowable Catches (TACs) and quotas for deep-sea species of fish. But the ministers agreed TACs greatly in excess of those proposed by the Commission, which fears that deep-sea species are threatened by overfishing.
The Minister for Communications and Natural Resources, Mr Ahern, welcomed the deal, which came after a day of heated argument in Brussels. He expressed satisfaction at the increase in Ireland's quota for three key species: the orange roughy, the roundnose grenadier and the black scabbard.
Irish fishermen will be entitled each year to catch 300 tonnes of orange roughy (22 per cent of the TAC), 346 tonnes of roundnose grenadier (6.8 per cent) and 93 tonnes of black scabbard (3 per cent).
"There was tough bargaining all day, but we're reasonably happy with the result. We did very well on the most important species for us, the orange roughy," Mr Ahern said.
Irish officials are especially pleased to have secured substantial percentages of TACs for the key species because, even if the TAC is reduced, the national share will remain the same.
However, fishing industry representatives have given a mixed reaction, with the Irish South and West Fishermen's Organisation (IS&WFO) describing it as "very disappointing".
The organisation's chief executive, Mr Jason Whooley, said it represented "a stitch-up by a few large players in the EU", and one which placed another questionmark in fishermen's minds over any support for the Nice Treaty.
However, France was still the major beneficiary, with just under 90 per cent for most of the species involved. Mr Whooley said it was a return to the "old political bartering" which was neither fair nor environmentally sustainable.
Mr Mark Lochrin of the Irish Fish Producers' Organisation (IFPO) described it as a predictable victory for the French, in that "they have got everything they wanted and the rest of us picked up the crumbs".
Mr Sean O'Donoghue, chief executive of the Killybegs Fishermens' Organisation (KFO), said that it was "better to be in the race than out of it", but he did not agree with the TAC and quota system.
Few observers expected a deal on deep-sea species yesterday but an agreement became possible after the Commission agreed to increase the quotas for a number of member-states, including Ireland.
Mr Ahern said that the deal would allow Irish fishermen to remain involved in increasingly lucrative deep-sea fishing.
Deep-sea species have become more important to European fishermen in recent years as stocks of white fish, such as cod and hake, have been depleted.
The ministers discussed a Commission proposal to radically overhaul the Common Fisheries Policy by drastically cutting fleets and limiting the number of days fishing vessels could go to sea. A Commission spokesman said he was optimistic that the reform package would be agreed by ministers before the end of this year.
The Fisheries Commissioner, Mr Franz Fischler, said the reform package was the fishing industry's only hope for survival.
While the ministers met, a number of activists protested outside, dressed as fish.