Noel Harrington (Cork South West, Fine Gael)
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Question 40: To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food his priorities in the reform of the Common Fisheries Policy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7709/11]

Noel Harrington (Cork South West, Fine Gael)
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Question 41: To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food his views on the reform of the Common Fisheries Policy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7708/11]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 40 and 41 together.

The Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) is the fisheries policy of the European Union, which was first put in place in 1983 and has been subject to reviews every 10 years. The most recent review in 2002 and the next is formally scheduled for 2012. The European Commission published a Green Paper on the latest reform of the CFP in April 2009 in order to launch a consultation with member states and stakeholders and to initiate a broad public debate on the future CFP reform. An extensive nationwide public consultation process was conducted under the chairmanship of Dr. Noel Cawley. These consultations with all stakeholders contributed to the paper Ireland's Response to the Commission's Green Paper, which was submitted to the Commission early in 2010.

I have examined this submission and have met and discussed the priorities for reform with fishing industry representatives. I fully endorse the priorities for change set down in Ireland's response on the CFP reform. The reforms we are seeking reflect a pragmatic approach involving changes that collectively take account of economic, social, environmental and sustainability factors.

The priorities I will focus on are:

- retention of the Hague Preferences;

- a new focus on addressing the discarding of fish at sea, with a complete ban being introduced for stocks in a depleted state;

- the retention of a management system based on national quotas, supported by increased flexibility and a rejection of the mandatory privatisation of fish quotas or the introduction of international trading of fish quotas;

- new measures to strengthen the market for EU producers and increase quayside prices;

- reinvigoration of European aquaculture, with continued structural support and a roadmap that establishes a route for growth in harmony with Community environmental law;

- a new regional structure to decision-making at EU level, with increased industry responsibility and the development of a culture of compliance;

In the current economic climate, we need a policy that both simplifies and reduces the administrative burden while at the same time strengthening and supporting the industry's capacity to maximise employment in coastal communities dependent on fishing. In particular, I will be pursuing initiatives that will deliver and sustain jobs in coastal communities rather than those that promote the concentration of wealth and delivery of excessive profits for a few big international businesses. I support a system that maintains strong economic links between national quotas and traditional fishing communities, which these quotas were allocated to assist. This will be a key area for Ireland in the ongoing discussions on the CFP.

I have arranged a bilateral meeting for tomorrow with Commissioner Damanaki, where I intend to vigorously pursue Ireland's position on key aspects of the reform which are critical for Ireland.