Kieran O'Donnell (Limerick City, Fine Gael)

I thank Deputy Connolly for raising this issue, which I am taking on behalf of the Minister of State, Deputy Dooley. I was speaking to him this morning in advance of the debate. He sends his apologies. He has to attend a meeting with the UK fisheries minister this morning. He will be in direct contact with the Deputy in the coming days on the matter. I hope that provides some level of reassurance. I will deal with the answer now, but at the top, it was important to make that point.

I stress that the Government is fully committed to maintaining support for our important inshore fishing sector and promoting the sustainability of fish stocks, as outlined in our programme for Government. The Deputy has already covered much of this background, but she will appreciate that I want to read it into the record.

In December 2018, the then Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine announced that vessels measuring more than 18 m would be excluded from trawling in inshore waters inside the six-nautical mile zone and the baselines from 1 January 2020. A transition period for vessels of more than 18 m targeting sprat was allowed to enable adjustment for these vessels, as the sprat fishery is concentrated inside the six-nautical mile zone. Policy directive No. 1 of 2019 was issued by the Minister to the independent licensing authority for sea fishing boats to give effect to these measures. This decision to exclude vessels of more than 18 m from trawling inside the six nautical miles was the subject of extended legal proceedings further to a judicial review to the High Court taken by two applicant fishermen challenging the validity of the policy. Following the final judgment of the Court of Appeal in this matter in 2023, where the applicants succeeded on the narrowest of grounds, policy directive No. 1 of 2019 was quashed and no longer has legal effect.

On the basis of legal advice received in respect of next steps, the then Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine decided to proceed anew with a public consultation on a review of trawling activity inside the six-nautical mile zone and the baselines. The purpose of the consultation was to invite stakeholders and interested parties to advise of their views on any potential changes to policy within the scope of this review. Due to the lengthy legal proceedings, it had been more than five years since the original scientific and economic advice was compiled.

Therefore, up-to-date scientific and economic advice was sought from the Marine Institute and Bord Iascaigh Mhara, respectively, on trawling in the waters inside six nautical miles and the baselines prior to public consultation. The consultation opened in February 2024 and took place over a period of eight weeks, closing in April 2024. The consultation took place without prejudice.

The Minister is conscious of the dependence of our onshore fleet, compared with larger vessels, on fishing resources within the six nautical mile zone. The policy context has changed since 2018. The Minister encouraged all interested parties to read the consultation documents and to reflect on them when making any submissions. The volume of submissions received during the new 2024 consultation was considerable, as the Deputy has already alluded to. Some 5,500 submissions were received, which was more than six times greater than the submissions received during the 2018 consultation, further highlighting the increased public interest in the matter. These submissions will be used to inform a review of trawling activity inside the six nautical mile zone and baselines. The sheer volume of detailed submissions takes time to collate and fully analyse. All relevant issues will be carefully considered before a decision can be made. Given the history of litigation in respect of this matter, it is critical that all of the necessary procedural and legal steps are taken before any final decision is made.

I reiterate that the Minister of State, Deputy Dooley, sends his apologies. He is in the UK to meet the fisheries minister. He would have liked to have taken this debate. He will make direct contact with the Deputy over the coming days.

See this speech in context