Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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573. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if his Department or Bord Iascaigh Mhara completed an analysis on the effects of the fishing trade since the Brexit vote in June 2016; and the details of all such documents and publication dates. [32418/17]

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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574. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the specific EU Council of Fisheries ministers meetings at which he made the case for the need of a Brexit financial support package for fishermen during the UK’s two year exit phase from the EU and subsequent transition phase since taking office; the date of every such meeting at which this was raised, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32419/17]

Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 573 and 574 together.

Discussions on the future of the Common Fisheries Policy and its funding component have not yet commenced within the Council. The size and distribution of the future marine & fisheries budget will be determined as part of the process for agreeing the next EU Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) for the post-2020 period, discussions on which are not expected to commence until early 2018.

Given the significant contribution the UK makes to the EU budget, its departure from the EU will have implications for future spending decisions in what is already a very tight budgetary framework. The current European Maritime and Fisheries Fund amounts to €6.4 billion in total, and there may be pressure from some Member States to reduce this amount and to divert EU spending to other policy areas.

It is vitally important that a strong EMFF budget is maintained for the future of fishing and the seafood industry in Ireland and Europe. This is something that I will be actively pursuing at Council level when discussions on funding levels commence.

My Department’s €240 million EMFF Fund Operational Programme for the seafood sector was launched in 2016. The Programme is implemented through 18 schemes, a number of which may directly assist the seafood sector to develop Brexit mitigation measures. The Programme provides €5 million to Bord Bia to supplement its normal seafood promotion work programme and this is allowing Bord Bia to have an Irish pavilion at many additional seafood trade fairs internationally. This can be expected to lead to new export markets for seafood enterprises, particularly in Asia, thus assisting the companies concerned in diversifying their market outlets.

Last October, as part of Budget 2017, I announced measures aimed at alleviating the pressures of income volatility and the potential impact of Brexit. These measures included an additional allocation of €1.6m in 2016 and €2m in 2017 to Bord Bia to ensure that they are in a position to provide Brexit-related supports to affected companies. I also provided for increased funding under the Rural Development Programme and Seafood Development Programme.

Earlier this year I awarded over €1.8 million in grants to 19 seafood enterprises under the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund Operational Programme for the seafood sector. The aim of these grants is to incentivise seafood innovation and new product development as a means of meeting the Brexit challenge.

As part of overall work on Brexit, my Department, in conjunction with Bord Iascaigh Mhara and the Sea Fisheries Protection Authority, are currently modelling the potential impacts Brexit might have on the seafood trade under the different possible scenarios. As part of this analysis, BIM are conducting a survey of seafood enterprises in Ireland to ascertain their dependence on trade directly with the UK and the use of the UK as a land bridge to continental markets.