Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael)

I thank Deputies for their engagement in what is a really important debate on the issues in respect of fisheries. The concern in all our coastal communities, as raised by Deputies, is very evident, particularly in Donegal and Cork where fishing is such an intrinsic part of our economic activity, as it is in Waterford and Dublin - the latter which is sometimes forgotten in terms of costal communities and economic activity - and, as the Minister of State, Deputy Dooley, knows all too well, Clare.

Deputy Lawless raised specific points which relate to inland fisheries that the Minister of State, wearing his other hat, will come back to from the other Department's side. Regarding the specific questions Deputy Collins raised, in my ten minutes here I do not have time to go through them all but the Minister of State will engage with the Deputy in correspondence on those very detailed, specific points.

I flag here that the waters around Ireland’s 7,500 km coastline have always been a source of remarkable seafood. Fishing remains of significant social and economic importance to Ireland and for many of our coastal communities, it is intrinsically linked to their identity and way of life. The sector employs over 15,000 people on fishing vessels and aquaculture sites, in processing operations and in the distribution of seafood. It helps to sustain vibrant rural and coastal communities across Ireland. Right now, however, the sector is under significant pressure. The Minister of State, Deputy Dooley, and I share many of the concerns raised during the debate, particularly those in relation to the setting of fishing opportunities in 2026.

As has been outlined, on 30 September, the International Council for Exploration of the Seas published deeply concerning advice for widely distributed pelagic stocks in 2026, including mackerel, blue whiting and boarfish, which were said to be depleted. This has caused deep and understandable concern in the sector. Given the urgent nature of these concerns, Ireland will bring a point to the agenda under "any other business" at the EU AGRIFISH Council next week, calling for urgent EU action to save north-east Atlantic pelagic stocks. We will call for the European Commission to identify and adopt suitable measures to respond to this crisis and, in particular, to bring forward measures regarding third countries which fail to co-operate and allow unsustainable fishing of a stock of common interest for the Union. Ireland will support the EU in taking a stand to engage constructively and as an equal partner with our fellow coastal states in the north-east Atlantic on the sustainable management of our shared fisheries resources. However, we must send a clear signal that the EU will no longer tolerate actions which threaten the sustainability of this vital natural resource or the viability of the EU’s seafood sector. In addition, we are committed to working across government to assess what supports may be available to the seafood sector in this very difficult context. Discussions are ongoing to explore options within the constraints of both EU and national Exchequer funding and the relevant EU and national legislation.

As regards bluefin tuna, I fully understand the very strong lobby among Irish fishermen for Ireland to receive an allocation of the EU's bluefin tuna quota. Ireland has a national quota for northern albacore tuna. Annual catch limits are set by the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas based on scientific advice. Ireland does not have a national quota for bluefin tuna. The available bluefin tuna quota is allocated each year to member states based on relative stability, as established in the late 1990s. At that time, Ireland did not have a track record of commercial fishing for bluefin tuna and, accordingly, did not receive a quota allocation. However, a small bluefin tuna by-catch quota is available to Ireland, primarily for use in our important northern albacore tuna fishery and Celtic Sea herring fishery, where there can be bluefin tuna by-catch.

In 2018, Ireland was successful, for the first time, in securing an agreement that allowed it to set up a catch-tag-release fishery to contribute to the collection of scientific data for the bluefin tuna stock. This catch-tag-release science-based fishery for authorised recreational angling vessels has been in place since 2019 and supports the collection of valuable data on the migratory patterns of bluefin tuna in Irish waters. This fishery is most beneficial to Ireland, as it increases our knowledge of the behaviour and abundance of bluefin tuna, while also providing a small but valuable tourism benefit to peripheral coastal communities. Ireland has made it clear to EU member states and the European Commission that there is a case for an allocation of the EU’s bluefin tuna quota to be made available to Ireland. The case is supported by the data collected in the catch-tag-release science-based fishery for authorised recreational angling vessels. Ireland has requested the opening of discussions at EU level to progress Ireland’s case and has made formal statements on the matter at numerous fisheries Council meetings in recent years. Opening up this issue is difficult, as other member states are resistant to any discussion on amending relative stability for this stock. As is the case across quota stocks in the EU, any change to relative stability would involve a loss for some other member states and, therefore, would pose particular challenges in a qualified majority voting context. However, the case for a national quota for bluefin tuna is supported by the data collected in the catch-tag-release science-based fishery for authorised recreational angling vessels. The Minister of State and I will continue to support our efforts on this at every available opportunity.

The ongoing impacts of Brexit to the sector and the extension to the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement, TCA, has also been raised in the House. I know it was a significant frustration to the sector that Ireland did not get some quota back from the UK in the discussions which ended in May this year. The challenge we have faced in this area has been the comparative strength of the UK's negotiating position vis-à-vis the EU’s. UK vessels do not rely on access to EU waters to fish to the same extent that EU vessels do. North Sea member states such as France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Denmark and Sweden are particularly reliant on access to the UK's exclusive economic zone, EEZ. While Irish vessels are not as dependent, we fish approximately one third of our catch in UK waters. Therefore, in the 2020 EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement, a strategic link was established between fisheries and energy. Without the agreement at the May summit, we faced the possibility of the UK either refusing to agree to a multi-year reciprocal access arrangement or seeking further quota transfers in order to agree to continued access for EU vessels. This was especially relevant as we approach the end of the adjustment period. This was critically important for Ireland as we suffered disproportionately on quota transfers in the TCA and we were determined not to lose one more fish. Given the number of fish stocks shared between the EU and UK - over 80 - it would not be feasible to negotiate and agree on access to waters and quotas on an annual basis. Therefore, the priority was to secure a continuation of the current arrangements with continued reciprocal access and no further transfers in quota from the EU to the UK. Ireland sought the longest possible extension to the status quo, on condition of there being no additional quotas transferred to the UK. The fisheries agreement reached sees an extension of 12 years of the status quo to June 2038, significantly longer than the four years previously sought by the United Kingdom. The certainty of an agreement to extend reciprocal access for EU and UK vessels to fish in each other’s waters for a period of 12 years, with no change to existing quota shares, is therefore welcome and a much better outcome than some of the other possibilities.

I also welcome the commitment to the negotiation of a sanitary and phytosanitary, SPS, agreement between the EU and the UK. This will be based on dynamic alignment by the UK with EU food safety standards and rules. There are long-established and mutually beneficial trading relationships between food producers in Ireland and food businesses and retailers in the UK. A comprehensive SPS agreement would greatly reduce the administrative burden on agrifood businesses exporting to the UK.

Many Deputies have raised the issue of Rockall, both today and in previous debates, and the desire of Irish fishermen to return to fishing in the waters around Rockall, especially for squid. Rockall is a small, uninhabitable rock located approximately 160 nautical miles west of the Scottish islands of St. Kilda and 230 nautical miles to the north-west of Donegal, as we all know. Ireland has not sought to claim sovereignty over Rockall. The UK claimed sovereignty over Rockall in 1955 and sought to formally annex it as part of Scotland under its 1972 Island of Rockall Act. The consistent position of successive Irish Governments is that Ireland does not recognise Britain's claim of sovereignty over Rockall. Accordingly, Ireland does not accept that a 12 nautical mile or 22 km territorial sea exists around Rockall. We understand that the UK takes a different view. In addition, Rockall, and similar rocks and skerries, have no significance for generating an exclusive economic zone or establishing legal claims to the continental shelf. We believe this position is reflected in the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, which provides, at Article 121, paragraph 3, that, "Rocks which cannot sustain human habitation or economic life of their own shall have no exclusive economic zone or continental shelf." I assure the House that reaching an agreement on issues relating to Rockall remains an important issue for the Government and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade is in ongoing contact with the relevant Scottish and UK authorities in this regard. This is an area to which the Minister of State has committed to contributing constructively in the months ahead, as he has in his time in this portfolio to date.

The programme for Government recognises the valuable role of fisheries in this country. As Minister, I am committed, alongside my Government colleagues, to defending the interests of the Irish fishing sector and securing a sustainable future for the sector. It is a sector that makes an invaluable contribution to our coastal communities and the rural economy. We will continue to work on addressing the issues it faces on behalf of the communities that rely on that activity for their livelihood. I thank the Office of the Ceann Comhairle for facilitating this important debate today.

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