Thomas Pringle (Donegal South West, Independent)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

184. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine to explain the reason the maximum funding available under article 50 of the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund is €50,000 for the new farmers scheme for new entrants into aquaculture; his views on whether it is adequate to encourage new entrants; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16688/15]

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

On 27 March 2015, I announced plans for a new €241 million development programme for the seafood sector for the period up to 2020, co-funded by the EU through the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund. I am inviting submissions on that draft Programme by 1 May 2015.

The draft Seafood Development Programme 2014-2020 proposes investment of €30 million in a number of measures specifically intended to support the sustainable development of the aquaculture sector. One of these measures relates to aid for capital investment by new entrants to the aquaculture sector. In the draft Programme, no maximum aid under this scheme is prescribed. Rather, the Programme specifies that where aid is more than €50,000, the applicant must submit a feasibility study including an environmental assessment, together with a business plan. These requirements reflect the mandatory provisions of article 46(2) of the EMFF Regulation. The co-legislators have prescribed in that article that aid may only be made available to new farmers where it has been clearly demonstrated in an independent marketing report that good and sustainable market prospects exist for the product.