Fisheries (Amendment) Act 1978

1 “Principal Act”.

1.—In this Act “the Principal Act” means the Fisheries (Consolidation) Act, 1959.

2 Indictable and summary proceedings for certain offences.

2.—(1) A person guilty of an offence under any section of the Principal Act specified in Table 1 to this section shall be liable, on conviction on indictment, to the fine specified in column (3) of Table 1 to this section at the reference number at which that section is specified and to the forfeiture specified in column (4) of that Table at that reference number.

(2) A District Justice shall have jurisdiction to try summarily any offence referred to in subsection (1) of this section if—

(a) the Justice is of opinion that the facts proved against the defendant so charged constitute a minor offence fit to be tried summarily,

(b) the Attorney General consents, and

(c) the defendant (on being informed by the Justice of his right to be tried by a jury) does not object to being tried summarily,

and upon conviction under this subsection, the said defendant shall be liable to the fine specified in column (3) of Table II to this section at the reference number at which the section of the Principal Act

to which the offence relates is specified and to the forfeiture (if any) specified in column (4) of that Table at that reference number.

(3) A person guilty of an offence under section 222A (inserted by this Act) of the Principal Act shall be liable, on conviction on indictment, to the fine specified in column (3) of Table III to this section and to the forfeiture specified in column (4) of that Table.

(4) Section 13 of the Criminal Procedure Act, 1967, shall apply in relation to an offence referred to in subsection (1) of this section as if the reference in subsection (2) (a) of that section to the penalties provided for in subsection (3) of that section were a reference to the penalty and the forfeiture (if any) provided for in relation to that offence when tried summarily by subsection (2) of and Table II to this section.

(5) (a) Section 310 of the Principal Act shall not apply to an order dismissing proceedings for an offence under any section of the Principal Act specified in the Tables to this section.

(b) Part XIX of the Principal Act shall apply to the fines and forfeitures provided for by this section and the Tables to this section as it applies to the fines and forfeitures referred to in that Part and references in sections 316 and 317 of the Principal Act to a District Justice and the District Court shall, in the case of a conviction by a court other than the District Court, be construed as references to that other court.

TABLE I

Reference Number	Section of Principal Act	Fine	Forfeiture
(1)	(2)	(3)	(4)
1.	Section 221 of Principal Act (restriction on foreign sea-fishing boats entering exclusive fishery limits of State).	Fine not exceeding £10,000	Forfeiture, at the discretion of the Court, of all of the following found on the boat to which the offence under the said section 221 relates:
			(a) any fish, (b) any fishing gear.
2.	Section 222 of Principal Act (provisions in relation to foreign sea-fishing boats lawfully entering exclusive fishery limits of State).	Fine not exceeding £10,000	Forfeiture, at the discretion of the Court, of all of the following found on the boat to which the offence under the said section 222 relates:
			(a) any fish, (b) any fishing gear.
3.	Section 223 of Principal Act (prohibition of certain methods of fishing within exclusive fishery limits of State).	Fine not exceeding £10,000	Forfeiture, as a statutory consequence of conviction of the offence under the said section 223, of all of the following found on the boat to which the said offence relates:
			(a) any fish, (b) any fishing gear.
4.	Section 223 A of Principal Act (conservation of fish stocks and rational exploitation of fisheries).	Fine not exceeding £10,000	Forfeiture, as a statutory consequence of conviction of the offence under the said section 223A, of all of the following found on the boat to which the said offence relates:
			(a) any fish, (b) any fishing gear.
5.	Section 226 of Principal Act (restriction on carriage of certain nets on board sea-fishing boats).	Fine not exceeding £10,000	Forfeiture, as a statutory consequence of conviction of the offence under the said section 226, of all of the following found on the boat to which the said offence relates:
			(a) any fish, (b) any fishing gear.
6.	Section 227 of Principal Act (restriction on carriage of devices for obstructing meshes of net).	Fine not exceeding £10,000	Forfeiture, as a statutory consequence of conviction of the offence under the said section 227, of all of the following found on the boat to which the said offence relates:
			(a) any fish, (b) any fishing gear.

TABLE II

Reference Number	Section of Principal Act	Fine	Forfeiture
(1)	(2)	(3)	(4)
1.	Section 221 of Principal Act (restriction on foreign sea-fishing boats entering exclusive fishery limits of State).	Fine not exceeding £500	—
2.	Section 222 of Principal Act (provisions in relation to foreign sea-fishing boats lawfully entering exclusive fishery limits of State).	Fine not exceeding £500	—
3.	Section 223 of Principal Act (prohibition of certain methods of fishing within exclusive fishery limits of State).	Fine not exceeding £500	Forfeiture, as a statutory consequence of conviction of the offence under the said section 223, of all of the following found on the boat to which the said offence relates:
			(a) any fish unlawfully caught,
			(b) any fishing gear used in the commission of the said offence.
4.	Section 223A of Principal Act (conservation of fish stocks and rational exploitation of fisheries).	Fine not exceeding £500	Forfeiture, as a statutory consequence of conviction of the offence under the said section 223A, of all the following found of on the boat which the said offence relates:
			(a) any fish unlawfully caught, (b) any fishing gear used in the commission of the said offence or to which the said offence relates.
5.	Section 226 of Principal Act (restriction on carriage of certain fishing nets on board sea-fishing boats).	Fine not exceeding £500	Forfeiture, as a statutory consequence of conviction of the offence under the said section 226, of any fishing net to which the said offence relates found on the boat to which the said offence relates.
6.	Section 227 of Principal Act (restriction on carriage of devices for obstructing meshes of net).	Fine not exceeding £500	Forfeiture, as a statutory consequence of conviction of the offence under the said section 227, of any device to which the said offence relates found on the boat to which the said offence relates.

TABLE III

Reference Number	Section of Principal Act	Fine	Forfeiture
(1)	(2)	(3)	(4)
1.	Section 222A (fishing while on board foreign sea-fishing boat within exclusive fishery limits of State).	Fine not exceeding £100,000	Forfeiture, as a statutory consequence of conviction of the offence under the said section 222A, of all of the following found on the boat to which the said offence relates:
			(a) any fish, (b) any fishing gear.

3 Increase of certain summary fines.

3.—The fine to which a person convicted of an offence under section 224, 228, 229, 231, 233 or 236 of the Principal Act shall be liable shall, in lieu of the fine provided for in the section under which he is convicted, be a fine not exceeding £500.

4 Forfeiture of boats used in commission of certain offences.

4.—Where, on conviction on indictment of a person for an offence under any of the following sections of the Principal Act, that is to say, sections 221, 222, 222A, 223, 223A, 226 and 227—

(a) the conviction is a second or subsequent conviction on indictment under any of those sections committed on board the same boat, whether the person convicted is or is not the same person on each occasion, and

(b) the boat is at the time of the commission of the offence owned or part owned by a person who was the owner or part owner of the boat on the occasion of the commission of any of the previous offences,

the Court may, at its discretion, in addition to any other fines and forfeitures to which the person may be liable, order the boat to be forfeited.

5 Restriction on foreign sea-fishing boats entering exclusive fishery limits of State.

5.—Chapter II of Part XIII of the Principal Act is hereby amended by the substitution of the following section for section 221:

“221. (1) It shall not be lawful for any foreign sea-fishing boat to enter within the exclusive fishery limits of the State except for—

(a) a purpose recognised by international law, or

(b) a purpose recognised by any convention, treaty or arrangement for the time being in force between the State and the country to which such boat belongs, or

(c) any other lawful purpose.

(2) If a foreign sea-fishing boat enters within the exclusive fishery limits of the State in contravention of subsection (1), the master of the boat shall be guilty of an offence.”.

6 Provisions in relation to foreign sea-fishing boats lawfully entering exclusive fishery limits of State.

6.—Chapter II of Part XIII of the Principal Act is hereby amended by the substitution of the following section for section 222:

“222. (1) If a foreign sea-fishing boat enters within the exclusive fishery limits of the State for—

(a) a purpose recognised by international law, or

(b) a purpose recognised by any convention, treaty or arrangement for the time being in force between the State and the country to which such boat belongs, or

(c) any other lawful purpose,

then—

(i) the boat shall leave the exclusive fishery limits of the State as soon as the purpose for which the boat so entered has been answered,

(ii) any regulations made under subsection (2) and for the time being in force shall be duly observed.

(2) The Minister may make regulations in relation to the maintenance of good order amongst foreign sea-fishing boats for the time being within the exclusive fishery limits of the State and the persons on board such boats.

(3) If there has been, in relation to a foreign sea-fishing boat which has lawfully entered within the exclusive fishery limits of the State or in relation to the persons on board her, a contravention (whether by commission or omission) of subsection (1) of this section, then, the master of the boat shall be guilty of an offence.”.

7 Fishing while on board foreign sea-fishing boat within exclusive fishery limits of State.

7.—Chapter II of Part XIII of the Principal Act is hereby amended by the insertion of the following section after section 222:

“222A. (1) A person on board a foreign sea-fishing boat shall not fish or attempt to fish while the boat is within the exclusive fishery limits of the State unless he is authorised by law to do so.

(2) A person who contravenes subsection (1) of this section shall be guilty of an offence.”.

8 Prohibition of certain methods of fishing within exclusive fishery limits of State.

8.—Chapter II of Part XIII of the Principal Act is hereby amended by the substitution of the following section for section 223:

“223. (1) The Minister may from time to time by bye-law prohibit or restrict (at the option of the Minister either, as may be specified in the bye-law, absolutely or unless such conditions as the Minister thinks fit to insert in the bye-law are complied with) the use, within the waters of any specified area (being an area within the exclusive fishery limits of the State), in or from either, as may be specified in the bye-law, any boat or any boat of a specified class, of any method of fishing (including trawling, seining and fishing by means of any kind of net hauled along the bottom of the sea whether by a moving boat or by any mechanical appliance in an anchored boat), and different bye-laws may be made in respect of different classes of boats and different methods of fishing.

(2) A person who acts or attempts to act in contravention of any bye-law made under this section shall be guilty of an offence.”.

9 Conservation of fish stocks and rational exploitation of fisheries.

9.—Chapter II of Part XIII of the Principal Act is hereby amended by the insertion after section 223 of the following section:

“223A. (1) The Minister may by order prescribe and adopt such measures of conservation of fish stocks and rational exploitation of fisheries as the Minister thinks proper.

(2) A person who contravenes or attempts to contravene an order under this section shall be guilty of an offence.

(3) The Minister may by order revoke or amend an order under this section including an order under this subsection.”.

10 Regulations for giving effect to the Convention on the Conduct of Fishing Operations in the North Atlantic.

10.—Chapter II of Part XIII of the Principal Act is hereby amended by the insertion of the following section after section 224:

“224A. (1) Without prejudice to the provisions of any other enactment, the Minister may, with the consent of the Minister for Tourism and Transport, make such provision by regulations as appears to him to be necessary or expedient for the purpose of carrying out the Convention on the Conduct of Fishing Operations in the North Atlantic made at London on the 17th day of March, 1967, or any convention amending or replacing that convention, and for giving effect thereto or to any of the provisions thereof.

(2) A person who contravenes a regulation under this section shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable, on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding £500.”.

11 Extension of powers of detention of boats to boats found in port.

11.—Section 233 of the Principal Act shall apply in relation to a sea-fishing boat which is found in a port as it applies to the other sea-fishing boats referred to in that section and, accordingly, the following paragraphs shall be substituted for paragraphs (a) and (g), respectively, of subsection (1) of section 233:

“(a) if the boat is under way, he may order it to be stopped for the purpose of identification or of allowing him to go on board it;

(g) if he suspects that there has been a contravention by any person on board the boat of the provisions of Chapter II or III of this Part, he may without summons, warrant or other process—

(i) if the boat is not in a port, take the boat and all persons on board to the nearest or most convenient port, and pending the taking by him of the steps required by section 233A or 234, as may be appropriate, detain the boat and the persons on board, and

(ii) if the boat is in a port, detain the boat and the persons on board at that port or take it and them to a more convenient port and there detain it and them, pending (in either case) the taking of the steps aforesaid;”.

12 Detention of boats and persons on board for 48 hours where certain offences suspected.

12.—Chapter IV of Part XIII of the Principal Act is hereby amended by the insertion of the following section after section 233:

“233A. Where a sea fisheries protection officer has, in the exercise of the powers conferred on him by section 233, detained a boat and the persons on board the boat at a port, the officer shall (unless he is proceeding under section 234), as soon as may be, apply to a District Justice, or, where no District Justice is immediately available, a Peace Commissioner for an order authorising the continued detention of the boat and those persons and the District Justice or Peace Commissioner may grant an order authorising such detention for a period of 48 hours if he is satisfied that a contravention of a provision of Chapter II or III of Part XIII of the Principal Act by a person on board the boat is suspected by the sea fisheries protection officer: upon the expiration of the period of 48 hours—

(a) the boat shall be released unless an order providing for its further detention has been made under section 234 before the expiration of the said period of 48 hours, and

(b) each person on board the boat shall be released unless an order providing for his further detention has been made under the said section before the expiration of the said period.”.

13 Detention of boats and persons charged or to be charged pending prosecution.

13.—Chapter IV of Part XIII of the Principal Act is hereby amended by the substitution of the following section for section 234: