Tim Lombard (Fine Gael)
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The Minister is more than welcome. My matter relates to the atypical work permits granted in the fishing industry and whether they may be extended for a longer period.

The more I researched the atypical work permit I found that it is an unusual work permit in many ways. We have ten different types work permits, one of which seems to be sitting in the Minister's Department. It is a bit of an outlier so I ask him to comment on how it has ended up in the Department. Nine are processed by the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation and one is dealt with by the Department of Justice and Equality. The Minister, therefore, might provide clarity on that issue because that would help me in the debate.

The atypical work permit is basically for crew in the fishing industry. This initiative was introduced in 2016 and it has been much welcomed by the fishing industry. As in many other industries, trying to attract has been an issue for the past decade. The atypical work permit has been a tool to bring in the foreign labour we require to ensure we have a viable fishing industry.

There are two major issues relating to the work permit. First, there is the duration. It is a 12-month work permit. Other work permits issued by the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation are valid for two years and can then be extended for three years. This seems to be a 12-month work permit only, which is very tight, particularly in the context of forward planning for the fishing industry. The 12-month limitation on the contract needs to be examined. It could be more flexible and work better with the industry in order that the industry can move forward and make better plans for the future.

Second, the contract needs to be certified by a practising solicitor, which is also an unusual condition for a work permit. This does not apply to the other work permits issued by the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation. This is an exceptional expense for the industry. I have heard of charges of up to €3,000 being required for that contract to be certified so there is an issue around why we have this condition tied into it. That is not like the other work permits because they do not have that contract certification issue tied to them.

As much as I am looking for the permit to be extended, the contractual issues must be examined as well. The Minister is wiser than I am but is his Department the right place for this permit to be processed? Does this need to be examined? Does responsibility for the processing of this permit need to be transferred to the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation? I went around the houses trying to get this matter taken because there is much uncertainty about where responsibility for this work permit sits.

Charles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Senator for raising this important issue. I regret it if he had some difficulty ascertaining within whose remit the issue lies. It is another example of the all-encompassing tentacles of the Department of Justice and Equality in the State. First, a High Court case is pending so I am restricted in what I can say. It is now almost three years since the employment of non-EEA crew members in the Irish fishing fleet was highlighted. In November 2015, the Government established an interdepartmental task force, which was chaired by the then Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputy Coveney, with the objective of formulating a co-ordinated and effective cross-Government response to the issue. The culmination of this work was the development of a new scheme that involved putting in place detailed contracts between the vessel owners and the non-EEA nationals with a series of protections and a corresponding series of obligations contained therein. These include, for example, details of wage rates and the repatriation at the end of the contract period paid for by the vessel owner. It is only after this is in place that the matter of immigration permission arises to allow such workers to be legally resident in the State. This is facilitated by my Department through the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service, INIS, which issues the atypical permission.

A memorandum of understanding for the monitoring and enforcement of the scheme was put in place between all the appropriate parties to ensure the various bodies with oversight of the sector were part of the solution. The scheme applies to crew members working on licensed and registered fishing vessels in the polyvalent, beamer and specific segments of the Irish fishing fleet for vessels more than 15 m in length overall. There is no time limit as to how long the scheme will last. The only condition relating to time is that the permission under the atypical work scheme for crew members must be applied for annually. Applicants to the scheme are required to have a contract of employment for a minimum term of 12 months. The permission under the scheme is granted in line with the duration of the contract.

Currently, there are no plans to extend the period for which atypical permission for a crew member may be granted. However, the atypical working scheme makes provision for both the renewal of a crew member's permission and the transfer of a crew member to an alternative employer within the industry as and when that might be required. As was noted by the Joint Committee on Business, Enterprise and Innovation in its report of November 2017, the scheme crosses a number of Departments and agencies. The role of my Department, through INIS, is to provide the appropriate immigration permission to the non-EEA nationals who have gone through the contract procedure, which is overseen by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, and who have met the criteria to work as a non-EEA crew member in the State. As part of the atypical approval process, the person applying for the permission is required to present confirmation of compliance with the requirements from the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine in the form of a unique identifier number issued by that Department and its central depository for contracts.

The Department of Justice and Equality is committed to publishing statistics on the number of permissions granted under the scheme on a half-yearly basis commencing in January next year. I can confirm that 29 new atypical permissions were granted and 107 permissions were renewed in 2017. Up to 31 October last, 44 new permissions were granted, 109 permissions were renewed and 12 permissions were granted for a change of employer.

The granting of an immigration permission follows from the contract put in place by the vessel owner and the non-EEA employee. Like all work permits issued in the State, the immigration permission follows in line with the terms and conditions of the particular contract. There are provisions in the scheme for new contracts to be put in place and for the transfer of contracts from one vessel owner to another should the case arise. It would not be possible to extend the immigration permission without first ensuring that there is a contract in place. The contract is specifically designed to protect the employee by clearly setting out the terms and conditions and the obligations of the vessel owners.

Tim Lombard (Fine Gael)
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I thank the Minister for his comprehensive reply. The information provided is very helpful. The core issue I tried to articulate relates to a situation whereby a vessel owner might have an employment contract for 24 months, which is over 12 months, and whether the visa could follow that. The other issue is the legal cost attached, which does not pertain to other work permits. This is a grey area on which we might have to work. I accept that this matte relates to the Departments of Business, Enterprise and Innovation, Agriculture, Food and the Marine and Justice and Equality. I am of the view that the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation should have responsibility for the permit but these are issues we will have to tease out over time.

Charles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael)
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The Senator makes an important point. While I do not have plans to extend the period for which the permission issues, I would be keen to have a proper and adequate flow of information for Senator Lombard, other Senators and the Cathaoirleach - having regard to his part of the country - in order that they do not experience the circumstances outlined, namely, not knowing who is dealing with a particular aspect of the scheme. I assure Senators of my assistance and support in that regard should the need arise.

The scheme is focused on ensuring that both the employment and human rights of migrant seafarers are fully protected and enforced to the highest degree through the combined work of all the appropriate agencies of the State. Different agencies and Departments have ongoing responsibility in this regard. It is the firm view of the oversight committee that if the scheme were to be suspended or abolished, non-EEA seafarers would be in a far more precarious situation. In such circumstances they would be open to a greater risk of exploitation. It would be remiss of me not to mention that a legal action is currently under way regarding the atypical scheme for crew members. The interdepartmental task force remains open to working with all the stakeholders to improve, develop and enhance the scheme where appropriate. My Department will continue to work with all the statutory agencies to ensure that those employed in the industry and their employers are in compliance with the regulations for employment in the fishing industry and with the general employment laws of the State.

Denis O'Donovan (Fianna Fail)
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Perhaps we should also reflect on the several non-EEA fishermen who were lost off Kinsale, Union Hall and Dunmore East. Nine or ten of them have come to harm in recent years. Fishing is a tough game. I thank the Minister and Senator Lombard for discussing this important matter.