Mick Barry (Cork North Central, Solidarity)
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1874. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the actions that have been taken by the marine survey office against owners of fishing vessels that refuse to submit log books. [28117/17]

Shane Ross (Dublin Rathdown, Independent)
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I answered a similar question from Deputy Jan O'Sullivan on 26 January 2017. Owners and Skippers of Irish Fishing Vessels of 25 Gross Tonnage and upwards are required under the Merchant Shipping Acts to maintain a log for the vessel and to enter into an agreement with their crew.  These two requirements are combined into a single document called a Fishing Vessel Logbook. 

These Fishing Vessel Logbooks should commence on, or as soon as a vessel is next operational, after 1st January and 1st July each year.  They should run for a maximum period of six months, expiring on 30th day of June or 31st day of December, as the case may be and immediately after that date they should be returned to the Mercantile Marine Office (MMO) of my Department.

As commercial sea fishing is regulated by the Fisheries Acts, 1959 to 2006 and comes under the remit of the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, my Department would not maintain data on licensed fishing vessels at any period in time or the number of licenced operating vessels required to submit logbooks during any 6 month period. 

The requirement to submit Fishing Vessel Logbooks to my Department arises in the context of the safe operation of the vessel and the welfare of the crew. The Marine Survey Office of my Department carries out surveys and inspections of fishing vessels and enforces compliance with the requirements regarding official logbooks, including where appropriate, the prosecution of offenders through the courts.