Clr Pádraig MacLochlainn said: “We can get a fairer deal for this region – in Ireland and in Europe. On issues such as the review of the Common Fisheries Policy, it is vital that this region has a strong voice in Europe.

“Radical reform of the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) is long overdue. Under the CFP, Ireland has never got a fair share of the allocation of quota in Irish waters. A totally unfair distribution has reduced Irish fishermen to minority stakeholders in Irish waters.

“It has been estimated that the value of the fish taken from Irish waters by non Irish vessels since 1973 vary could be as high as 200 billion. That is scandalous and has led to decimation of fishing communities the length and breadth of Ireland.

“Sinn Féin’s submission contains comprehensive recommendations to deal with these problems including a new, fairer quota for Irish fishermen.

“It is time for a new deal for the Irish fishing industry. For too long Ireland has been at the periphery of Europe while the counties of this constituency have been at the periphery of Ireland. From the foundation of the state they have been ignored, neglected and decimated.

“Sinn Féin is the only party with proposals to redress that neglect. We are the party with job creation and retention as our priority, we have a solid record of defending workers rights, public services, our farmers and fishermen. We are a party who never fails to promote and defend the interests our constituents. We are a party whose elected representatives understand what life is really like for their communities because they only accept an average industrial wage," he said.