Andrew Doyle (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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437. To ask the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht if he will give details of Ireland's contribution to the European Maritime Day Conference recently held in Valletta, Malta; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25853/13]

Jimmy Deenihan (Kerry North-West Limerick, Fine Gael)
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While I do not have statutory functions in relation to maritime issues I had the pleasure to represent the Irish Presidency of the EU at the annual European Maritime Day Conference held in Malta on 21-22 May. I was also guest at a pre-Conference dinner hosted by the Prime Minister of Malta on 20 May. The theme of this sixth annual European Maritime Day Conference was Coastal Development and Sustainable Maritime Tourism.

The European Maritime Day 2013 Conference was organised by the European Commission in partnership with the Maltese Ministry for the Economy, Investment and Small Business, and the Maltese Ministry for Tourism. Approximately 850 participants participated in one or more of the 27 sessions of the Conference, among them a number of Irish participants.

I addressed the opening session of the Conference and detailed Irish Presidency priorities in the area of Blue Growth, including the adoption of an Action Plan for the Atlantic Area Strategy. I outlined the measures we are taking in Ireland to harness the potential of coastal and maritime tourism, as part of an overall integrated approach to the management of our marine assets as set out in the Government's Integrated Marine Plan: Harnessing Our Ocean Wealth launched by the Government in 2012, aims to double the value of Ireland's ocean wealth to 2.4% of GDP by 2030 and increase the turnover from our ocean economy to exceed €6.4bn by 2020. The Integrated Marine Plan provides momentum for growth in the marine area and seeks to ensure that government ministries work together more efficiently and effectively on the diverse issues related to the marine. Work to implement the Plan is being overseen by the Inter-Departmental Marine Coordination Group, chaired by the Minister for the Marine, Simon Coveney.

As is customary for the Presidency in the first half of the year, the Irish Presidency also convened a Senior Officials Meeting and lunch en marge of the Conference, with the theme of delivering the objective of maritime growth and jobs.