Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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Question 62: To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food his plans to revive the inshore fishing industry; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7784/11]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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Firstly, I wish to give an assurance that I am strongly committed to the development of all aspects of the seafood sector, where I see considerable opportunity for job creation. In the current economic climate I am conscious of the economic importance of the inshore sector to our coastal communities and I wish to give a commitment that I will work to maintain and enhance this sector. I understand that the inshore sector has its own particular issues and challenges which I intend to examine over the coming period. The inshore fisheries are economically important and provide premium product for the home and export markets. The challenge for me will be to support environmental sustainability and to maximise returns from both the fresh and processed markets.

Bord Iascaigh Mhara (BIM) is the State body responsible for the development of the fishing industry. BIM's Strategy for the Seafood Sector is geared at improving the seafood sector's performance by assisting industry through programmes of skills development, enhanced environmental compliance, product differentiation and labelling, new product development and innovation and improved commercial practices. The Strategy's time frame and targets are designed to contribute to the achievement of 2020 targets in Food Harvest (FH 2020).

To date, BIM has made considerable progress in assisting the seafood sector in being more innovative. The BIM Seafood Development Centre, based in Clonakilty, Co. Cork, has assisted in excess of 60 companies in using its innovation facility since its launch in 2009. BIM is also taking a strong role in terms of working with inshore fishermen in relation to conservation and management issues.

An area of immediate priority is to deliver compliance with the Birds and Habitats Directives following the European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruling in 2007 that Ireland was not in compliance with the requirements of the Birds and Habitats Directives in a number of respects. Failure to comply with the Directives could see the imposition of fines on Ireland. The implementation of the Birds and Habitats Directives is particularly relevant to inshore fishermen as the areas designated as special areas of conservation or special protected areas are primarily located in bays and inlets and other areas close to the coastline. There are over 90 such designated areas around the coastline. All activities in Natura sites, including inshore fisheries, are subject to assessment to determine significant impacts on the conservation objectives of the Natura sites. The immediate priority is to deliver compliance of fisheries activities with the requirements of these Directives. The National Parks and Wildlife Service, the Marine Institute, BIM and the Department are prioritising the assessment of compliance for inshore fisheries around the coast in Natura sites on a systematic basis. My objective is to deliver full compliance with the Birds and Habitats Directives for this sector at the earliest possible date.