Seanad debates
Tuesday, 15 June 2021
Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters
EU Directives
9:00 am
Fintan Warfield (Sinn Fein)
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The final Commencement matter comes from Senator O'Donovan who was in the Chair when many of my own Commencement matters were discussed. I think I might have had more selected when he was Cathaoirleach.
Denis O'Donovan (Fianna Fail)
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I welcome the Minister of State to the House. As I think this is my first time speaking before him, I wish him every success in his brief.
The EU Regulation, Article 61(1) of the Control Regulation 1224/2009, imposes unrealistic and extreme demands on fishermen and fisherwomen to have all products weighed at the place of landing before being transported, held in storage or sold. This new article imposes severe and undue hardship on inshore fishermen who are already hard pressed to make a living. I will explain what I mean by inshore fishermen. I live in Schull, but the same applies to Crookhaven, Baltimore, Union Hall, and all around the coastline including in Donegal and Wexford where they fish in small boats of between 18 ft. and 35 ft. I believe the fishermen are an endangered species because their catch is getting tighter and scarce. They fish for crab, brown crab, velvet crab, scallop, shrimp, etc.It is seasonal and depends on the weather, and many times their vessels are tied up. Most of these fishermen are part time. One could not make a living full-time doing this work. In my view, Article 61(1) was never intended to target these inshore fishermen. It was intended to target, in some instances, the illegal landing of pelagic fish in large amounts and lots. It has now accidentally spilt over on to these unfortunate fishermen. The cost to fishermen, whether they be in Schull, Crookhaven or Union Hall, of getting a weighing scales to weigh a box of crabs, two or three dozen lobsters, or perhaps a box of shrimp is totally unrealistic. It should be revoked.
Fishermen traditionally trusted the factories and storage facilities. The fish were weighed, and they were paid a fair sum of money for the product they fished, supplied and brought on shore. This new regulation will place a burden on them which many will not be in the position to meet or to take on board financially. It is ludicrous and I ask the Minister of State to convey this message, not alone to the Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority, SFPA, which is the enforcer in this country, but also to the European Commission.
As another example, recently in Castletownbere, three large Spanish trawlers landed probably about 100,000 tonnes of pelagic fish. Not one of those fish was weighed. The fish were landed in large refrigerated lorries and transported all the way to Spain. Who is monitoring that? Who is controlling that situation? In my view, there is no one doing so. Unless we wake up and look after the inshore fishermen - I am talking about the small guys or the small women, in regard to their catch, around the coast - they will be put out of business. When that is all gone, we will have people in Schull or Baltimore and in the restaurants throughout the country, who would love to see crab meat, lobster or shrimp on their plate, asking what happened to those fishermen. They have been over-regulated and hounded out of business. As I said earlier, these people are the endangered species, yet the big players, particularly the Spanish and the French who have abnormal quotas, seem to do what they want. I ask the Minister of State to wake up. I know he is here representing the Minister, Deputy McConalogue, who has his own situation in County Donegal. I ask them to give some respect and fair play to these part-time fishermen who are trying to eke out a living. Some of them are on the fish assist scheme, etc. They should not be put out of business.
James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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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.
Denis O'Donovan (Fianna Fail)
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I know the Minister of State is standing in for the Minister, Deputy McConalogue, but that answer disappoints me. The facts are that tomorrow week, there will be hundreds of trawlers coming up the Liffey by way of protest. The reasons for this are that countries like Belgium have a larger quota for certain species than the Irish have. We have been totally unrepresented. The Minister, through the Commissioner and the Commission, must stand up for the rights of these fishermen. To say that the SFPA will do its job is grossly unfair. Why is the SFPA not in places like Castletownbere and Dingle, and other ports like Killybegs or Ros an Mhíl, weighing the fish brought in by the French and the Spanish monthly or weekly? That is ignored but the poor Irish guys, especially the inshore fishermen, are really overpoliced. They can - excuse the language - go to hell. The treatment of the inshore fishermen over the years, by the SFPA and this Government or previous Governments, has been a disgrace and nothing less.
With due respect, I know the SFPA is independent, but if it does not listen, the fishermen will not lie down. They have communities and families. This will only be the start of some sort of a fishing war that is not going to go away in the short term. Public representatives, whether they be Deputies or Senators, will regret the decisions being made by Europe and enforced by the SFPA. Somebody has to wake up and smell the roses.
James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I hear that Senator O'Donovan is very passionate and has genuine concerns on this matter. It is a matter that affects a number of coastal counties, including my county of Wexford. I will certainly bring his concerns to the attention of the Minister, Deputy McConalogue, when he returns from Lisbon. It is a matter I will certainly raise with him as the concerns, which are real and genuine, are affecting fishing communities throughout this entire country. I understand where those concerns come from, very much so.
Fintan Warfield (Sinn Fein)
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The Minister of State has been busy today.