Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will report on the recent agreement on EU level on fish discards; if he will confirm that up to 7% of all fish caught may be discarded, after a phase-in period that allows for 9% for two years and then 8% for two more years; if he will also report on the upcoming negotiations between the European Council and the EU Parliament on the basic regulation of the Common Fisheries Policy and in particular the proposed policy on discards; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14725/13]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

At the Council of Fisheries meeting on 26^th of February, following a long and challenging set of negotiations, I successfully brokered the political agreement of the EU Fisheries Council for the introduction of a Europe wide discards ban. The Council general approach allows for some practical measures that will support the effective implementation of the discards ban. In relation to de-minimis, it provides that the de-minimis exemption shall apply in specific situations such as: i) where scientific evidence indicates that increases in selectivity are very difficult to achieve; or ii) to avoid disproportionate costs of handling unwanted catches, for those fishing gears where unwanted catches per fishing gear do not represent more than a certain percentage, to be established in the plan, of total annual catch of that gear.

This exemptionshall not exceed a total of 7% of the total annual catches of the species concerned. But for a transitional period of four years the percentage of the total annual catches referred to under de-minimis shall increase: (i) by two per cent (to 9%) in the first two years of application of the landing obligation; and (ii) by one per cent(to 8%) in the subsequent two years. The European Parliaments position which is set down in its First Reading (6 February 2013) does not provide for a de-minimis option. A first round of trilogues with Parliament and the European Commission took place on the Basic Regulation on the 19^th of March. As Presidency, we have in place a schedule of further trilogues planned over the coming weeks with the aim of having political agreement by the end of June.