Comhairle nan Eilean Siar PRESS RELEASE 5 June 2000 For Use: Immediately

With the help of a Labour Member of the European Parliament, Comhairle nan Eilean Siar will Shortly meet with the European Fisheries Commissioner, Franz Fischler MEP.

During a visit to the Western isles, Catherine Stihler MEP agreed to arrange a meeting so that the Comhairle could speak directly to Mr Fischler. Convener, Alex Macdonald, described the meeting with Catherine Stihler as extremely useful. He said,

"We had a wide-ranging discussion with the MEP and with our MSP, Alasdair Morrison. I am very pleased that Catherine Stihler has agreed to arrange this meeting. We are acutely aware that the reform of the Common Fisheries Policy will greatly impact on our islands and we certainly welcome this opportunity to state our concerns and ambitions on behalf of the fishing community".

Catherine Stihler MEP, who is a regular visitor to the Western Isles said,

"Before my election to the European Parliament I visited the Western Isles and liaised closely with Labour Party representatives. This latest discussion with the Convener and Vice Convener, Roddy Murray, certainly helps to reinforce what I know about the challenges facing the Islands and I will ensure that the Comhairle gets access to all the relevant people in Brussels."

Catherine Stihler is a member of the influential Fisheries Committee and is also a member of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Consumer Policy. Elected to the European Parliament as Catherine Taylor, she has recently married and before leaving the Comhairle Offices, Convener Alex Macdonald presented the MEP with flaky salmon from the Uist based company Salar. He joked that the salmon was a belated wedding present from the Comhairle and added that it was an example of the many excellent products which are now being produced in the Western Isles,

Catherine Stihler said that she was firmly of the view that the islands had

"phenomenal potential to benefit from the high quality products indigenous to the Western Isles. We must strive to ensure that value is added before these products leave the islands."

Ends

Issued by Nigel Scott
Communications Officer