Mr. Brian Hogan:

I thank the committee for inviting me here today. The issues which gave rise to the development of the atypical worker permit scheme, which is essentially concerned with the employment circumstances of fishers who may not enjoy the benefits enjoyed by their EU or EEA equivalents, deserve our attention. From my particular perspective, enhancing the safety of all seafarers, including fishers, operating in Irish waters, whatever their nationality, is a key aim of the Marine Survey Office. It is for this reason that I welcome the opportunity to contribute to the discussion here today.

In reviewing the transcript of the previous hearing it is clear that there may be some issues which need clarification in terms of who does what and who is responsible for what within the overall machinery of the State. This is understandable given the complexity of the issues and the regulatory framework in which we operate. While I can obviously only answer for the work and role of the Marine Survey Office, I believe the atypical scheme represents a genuine attempt to focus the efforts of the relevant State agencies to address the issues which had been identified, working within the overall legal and statutory powers that the respective agencies can exercise.

To begin, I would like to set out my role, as chief surveyor of the Marine Survey Office, MSO, in regulating maritime safety. I will explain the work and role of the Marine Survey Office and outline the manner in which the safety regulation of fishing vessels is undertaken by the Marine Survey Office. My aim is to demonstrate the very direct and positive impact of this work for the fishing sector generally and for those working in the sector.

First and foremost, the MSO is the safety regulator for maritime transport in Ireland. We regulate all vessel types in Ireland at sea and on inland lakes and rivers, regardless of whether they operate under the Irish flag. We also regulate all Irish flagged ships wherever they are in the world. Our primary focus in exercising this role is to ensure safe travel at sea. This means ensuring the safety of the vessel itself, from design stage, to launch and to periodic checks, and ensuring seafarers operating those vessels have the right qualifications and training, accredited by suitably certified training institutions, to operate them safely. We are very proud of the fact that Ireland has maintained an enviable safety record internationally, as evidenced by our white list status within the structures of both the International Maritime Organization and the Paris Memorandum of Understanding. This white list status is vital for Ireland’s maritime sector. Without it, our ships would face challenges as they ply their trade and our seafarers would face difficulties in attaining and retaining employment.

The maritime transport sector is among the most highly regulated in the world. The International Maritime Organization sets that regulatory framework and it is our job to ensure Ireland complies. This compliance is assessed vigorously and regularly at an international level by the International Maritime Organization and at a European level by the European Maritime Safety Agency, EMSA, on behalf of the European Commission. We cannot afford to be complacent about this and we do our best to guard our white list and other similar statuses. Our ships and our seafarers depend on it.

The MSO carries out a very wide range of statutory functions in relation to maritime transport. This includes the statutory survey and certification of all domestic passenger ships and boats operating in the State. The MSO carries out port State control inspections on all international passenger ships including the ro-ro passenger ships operating to the United Kingdom and France. In addition, the MSO surveys all Irish merchant ships and carries out port State control inspections of foreign flagged merchant ships calling to Irish ports. The MSO approves and regulates the port security arrangements in all Irish ports and the port reception facilities for ship generated waste. The MSO is tasked with regulating the prevention of ship source pollution, including air emissions from ships and other discharges. The MSO also oversees maritime education and training in Ireland at all of our maritime colleges. With our team of marine surveyors, based in three offices in Dublin, Cork and Ballyshannon, we work constructively with the maritime transport sector and the various educational and training institutions in Ireland to ensure we maintain and safeguard maritime transport for those working in the sector and those who rely on it to transport people and goods. How does our work impact on the fishermen in question here?

There are some 2,020 Irish fishing vessels, every one of which must hold a sea fishing boat licence. These licences are issued by the sea fish licensing authority. Such a licence is required to engage in commercial fishing. The role of the MSO in relation to these vessels, as for all vessels, is to oversee safety regulation. For the purposes of regulation of safety, the Irish fishing fleet is divided into three categories based on length: there are 75 vessels more than 24 m in length, 130 vessels between 15 and 24 m, and approximately 1,815 vessels less than 15 m. As the safety needs of the vessels in each of these three categories are different, the MSO regulates each category differently. Essentially, each fishing vessel must hold a safety certificate issued by or under the authority of the MSO. These safety certificates are issued following an initial survey for a period that varies depending on the size of the vessel, essentially four years. Vessels must undergo some form of intermediate survey, depending on their length, and at the expiry of the certificate, each vessel must undergo another survey for the issue of a new safety certificate, and the cycle repeats.

The safety regulation for fishing vessels is very comprehensive and covers the design and construction of the vessel, including the materials of construction, the strength of the vessel and the stability and watertight integrity of the vessel. The regulations also cover the mechanical and electrical systems, including the machinery, and all systems on board. The regulations also cover lifesaving and firefighting requirements. The regulations require that all aspects of the fishing vessel are designed and built under the supervision of the MSO. A survey can extend from several months and longer for a new construction to several days for a renewal survey. The application for the survey is made by the vessel owner who pays for the survey. The successful conclusion of a survey results in a certificate or the endorsement of an existing certificate. The MSO also regulates the training and competency of the crew and issues the crew with certificates of competency.

In line with other similar jurisdictions, the MSO has its own core group of surveyors who survey approximately 10% of the Irish fleet directly. We delegate the remainder of our survey work to private sector organisations approved by us and acting on our behalf. For the larger fishing vessels in the 15 to 24 m category and the over 24 m category, these organisations are known as classification societies. They perform this role for us. A panel of private surveyors, established by the MSO, carries out surveys for vessels less than 15 m in length.

The committee may be interested to know how fishing vessel safety regulation has developed in Ireland. The main source of regulation for many years was the 1967 rules which dealt with lifesaving and firefighting requirements. The first major development in recent years was the adoption of EU Directive 97/70, which made the International Maritime Organization’s Torremolinos Protocol applicable in the EU. This was transposed into Irish law. This directive and protocol requires that all fishing vessels greater than 24 m meet the requirements of the protocol and that they are subject to a survey and issued with safety certificates. The Torremolinos Protocol has recently been amended by means of the Cape Town Agreement, although this has not yet entered into force internationally.

The next major development was the implementation of the fishing vessel code of practice for the design, construction, equipment and operation of small fishing vessels of less than 15 m in length. This code of practice was issued in 2004 and has been updated on two occasions. All fishing vessels in this category have been regulated by this code since that date. Regulation of the remaining category of the fleet – vessels between 15 m and 24 m in length – began in 2007 and, since then, there has been a progressive implementation of safety standards for such vessels. The vessels in this category have been fully regulated since 2011.

Since the introduction of these safety regimes, the safety record of the sector has been progressively improving. While it is very important to avoid complacency, it is the case that there has been a positive trend over time and we will continue to work with the industry to ensure this trend continues. The focus of the MSO is, and must be, on safety.

Our aim is to work with the fishing industry to enhance the safety of fishing vessels in the interests of people of all nationalities who work on them. The improvements in safety in recent years have been achieved through co-operation with the fishing sector. Our earnest hope is that this co-operation will continue so that the improvements which have been achieved can be built on in the future. While the MSO has no role in worker permissions, it plays an important role in the safety regulation of fishing vessels. Success in this important area of safety depends on the co-operation of the fishing sector. Our aim is to continue to work with the sector to improve the safety of fishing vessels and those who work on them.