Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for giving me the opportunity to respond to the challenges facing the fishing industry. It is an industry I know well. Indeed I know many of the people who work in it well, having been Minister with responsibility for fisheries. The current Minister Agriculture, Food and the Marine, with responsibility for fisheries continues to prioritise it, whether it is through the Brexit discussions, through the roll-out of the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund, EMFF, which has seen almost a doubling in the funding available to the fishing industry under the new Common Fisheries Policy, or through new innovative policy around banning large trawlers from the six mile zone to try to create space for smaller trawlers and artisan fishing industries in west Cork, west Donegal and elsewhere. We will continue to prioritise the fishing industry and to protect it from the challenges it is undoubtedly facing, whether around sustainability, marine litter, achieving a fair share of the quota, ensuring we maintain and protect fish stocks by applying the science appropriately in deciding on available quota each year or ensuring we drive a hard bargain and protect our fishing industry in the context of Brexit decisions. All those things are a priority for Government and, if I may say, are being handled effectively by the current Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine who continues to raise the fishing industry's issues around the Cabinet table and elsewhere.

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