Cormac Devlin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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126. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if he will examine the issue of recognising qualifications, including the radio operators certificate, awarded by an organisation (details supplied), which are widely recognised in other jurisdictions, and are required for an owner to obtain a boat’s MMSI number; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4274/25]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal East, Fianna Fail)
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This is an important maritime safety issue and the long-established position on this matter is set out in my Department's Marine Notice Number 12 of 2004. It is noted that the referenced qualification is stated as being issued by the Royal Yachting Association (RYA), which is understood to be a governing body for the sport of sailing in the United Kingdom. In this case it is a matter for the relevant issuer, which is the RYA, to approach its parent maritime authority in the UK, which is the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) an executive agency of the United Kingdom’s Department for Transport (DfT), seeking to make a request for recognition. If, having followed its own internal procedures, the UK's DfT was subsequently to make such a request for recognition to my Department, my officials would consider it in accordance with the relevant legal procedures and other appropriate criteria having regard to oversight and safety standards amongst others. In this regard, it should be noted that, as the United Kingdom is no longer a member of the European Union, the provisions under existing EU legal mechanisms for recognition, including standards and oversight of qualifications, no longer apply. Separately, my Department has approved numerous training providers for the issue of such Irish radio operators certificates. The comprehensive list of these approved radio course providers is available on the Department's "Seafarers.ie" website, which relates to Maritime Education and Training in Ireland.