James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I apologise on behalf of the Minister, Deputy McConalogue, who is in Lisbon today for important discussions relating to the Common Agricultural Policy and, unfortunately, cannot be here. I thank Senator O’Donovan for providing me with the opportunity to update the House on the matters pertaining to this very important issue.

For the record, I should state at the outset that the strict legal position in relation to the revocation of Ireland's control plan is that the monitoring and control of fishing vessels within Ireland's exclusive fisheries zone are matters for the Irish control authorities. Under the Sea-Fisheries and Maritime Jurisdiction Act 2006, all operational issues of this nature are exclusively for the Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority and the Naval Service. Therefore, the Minister, Deputy McConalogue, is expressly precluded from getting involved in operational matters such as this.

By way of background, as the Senator will be aware, following an EU Commission audit in 2018, Ireland received a formal decision of the Commission's intention to conduct an administrative inquiry under Article 102(2) of the 2009 EU Fisheries Control Regulation to evaluate Ireland's capacity to apply the rules of the Common Fisheries Policy, CFP. The findings of the inquiry were communicated to Ireland in December 2020. The findings of the administrative inquiry deemed the Irish control and sanctioning systems as unsatisfactory, and the Commission put forward a concrete and specific package of measures to address the issues raised. Many of the issues arising in the administrative inquiry are operational matters for the SFPA and, under statute, the Minister is precluded from getting involved in them.

The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine has commenced a process of engagement with the EU Commission in association with the SFPA, which is responsible for operational matters. In the context of this engagement, the Senator will appreciate that the Minister is not in a position to comment on the EU Commission's findings and the package of measures the Commissioner has set out. To do so, at this juncture, would risk prejudice to Ireland's position. In the context of the administrative inquiry, Ireland was notified in April 2021 of a Commission implementing decision revoking the approval of the Irish control plan submitted for the weighing of fishery products. The European Commission deemed that Ireland's obligations arising from the 2009 EU Fisheries Control Regulation were not being met by the Irish control plan as the risk of non-compliance with the rules of the CFP could not be minimised. The Commission implementing decision in relation to the revocation of the control plan states:

... operators did not have in place a "weighing system fit for purpose", as provided under ... the control plan and the audit identified manipulation of weighing systems. Moreover, although aware of [these] shortcomings, Ireland did not take appropriate measures to address such noncompliance, in particular by withdrawing the permission to weigh after transport as foreseen in ... the control plan. Consequently, the control plan does not minimise the risk of ... [systemic] manipulation of weighing pelagic catches in Ireland and the under-declaration of catches by operators.

Since the Commission's decision was announced, I understand the SFPA has engaged directly with the industry to ensure that fishers and processors are familiar with the changes that are required to comply with EU weighing requirements, and continues to engage with the industry on this matter. The SFPA recently advised that it is holding a public consultation to gather feedback and opinion on a revised control plan for a derogation to weigh fish after transport in Ireland. The online consultation is open until 18 June 2021 and is available on the SFPA website.

On behalf of the Minister, Deputy McConalogue, I would like to reassure the Senator and the House that the Government takes the Commission's findings relating to fisheries control failures, including the revocation of Ireland's control plan, very seriously. We are fully committed to having an effective, dissuasive and proportionate system of fisheries control in place.