I thank the Senators again. To answer directly, I too share the concerns raised. I have visited many piers and harbours around the country, but there is not an envelope of money in our Department to be able to fund them. I have, therefore, begun a process of engagement across Departments. I did not want to come in and stick to the script, which would, effectively, say it is an issue for another Department, because that does not solve the problem. We are all in government together. While local authority piers do res…

As the Deputy knows, European beneficial ownership laws apply across economic sectors, including the seafood sector. I understand a package of new EU anti-money laundering rules, including rules in relation to beneficial ownership, was adopted as recently as 2024. The Common Fisheries Policy, CFP, basic regulation does not specify requirements regarding ownership of vessels, other than providing that a Union fishing vessel is one flying the flag of a member state and is registered in the Union. The Irish register o…

I will try to keep to the time. I thank the Deputy for that clarification. I am fully aware of the concerns expressed by fishermen about the capacity of large corporations that have bought up quota from other member states that chose to privatise their quota. We have protected our quota in the interest of coastal communities. There is an ongoing evaluation of the CFP, which is expected to be published in May of this year. I expect it will lead to a review of the CFP, as part of which opportunities will arise in rel…

The issue is a little broader than what the Deputy has presented. There is a suggestion that somehow these corporations do better than us in quota negotiations but, in fact, they do not. Quotas are based on track record. If the quota goes down based on scientific advice, each country loses a share based on that species. I wanted to correct that point. Where there is an issue, and it speaks to the heart of what the Deputy is saying, is with the idea of playing both sides of the fence, being within the European Union…

As the Deputy may be aware, our Department operates and maintains six designated State-owned fishery harbour centres, located at Castletownbere, Dingle, Dunmore East, Howth, Killybegs and Ros an Mhíl in her own constituency. Additionally, our Department has responsibility for the upkeep and maintenance of north harbour at Cape Clear, as well as the maintenance of a small number of specific piers, one of which is Cleggan in the Deputy's constituency, which may be what she has in mind here, as well as in relation to …

That is an issue right around the coastline. The funding we provide to local authorities is relatively small, and an input is required from them. It is really only suitable for minor upgrade works. I am conscious that there are others, including Cleggan and a number of others that Deputies from Deputy Farrell’s constituency and elsewhere have been in touch with me about . That scheme does not meet the needs. I am in discussions with a number of Departments, including the Departments of rural affairs and tourism, be…

I fully get that. I saw in the case of Connemara where part of Cleggan is owned by our Department and part by the local authority. There was a comprehensive plan there which was probably too large in scale. While everyone liked it, nobody was able to come up with the comprehensive amount of money. I have suggested to them that they might look at a slimmed down version and we can see how we manage that. In that case, while there is some fishing activity there it is relatively small but there is a really important fe…

The oil companies will put it up again.

The oil companies will put it up again.

I thank Senator Kyne. I note his interest in this matter, which he has raised with me on a number of occasions. I am pleased to get an opportunity to discuss it in the House. Ireland's first non-statutory marine planning policy statement, MPPS, for all marine planning aspects was published in November 2019, pending the introduction of the national marine planning framework and the enactment of the Marine Area Planning Act 2021. In 2019, the MPPS outlined existing components of the marine planning system and its fut…

I thank the Senator. As he has rightly identified, I am precluded from discussing or engaging with the functions that are the sole preserve of MARA. Having met with representatives such as the Senator and others, I am acutely aware of their concerns and particularly of those of the traditional harvesters, both those who have reference on their folios and those who do not but have a track record in the area. I am also very concerned about the issues that were rightly identified in those engagements. I would like to …

I too welcome the distinguished guests to Leinster House. There is a group from Liscarroll, which is in Cork. I think at some stage I was down there with my daughter, who was playing handball. I cannot remember if it was terribly successful from our perspective or not but it was an enjoyable time. I thank the Senators for the work they have done on this Bill. They contributed to Second Stage last week and I see that a number of well thought-out amendments have been proposed for this debate. Senators Noonan, Cosgrov…

I understand where the Senator is coming from on this. The Senator and I would know certainly know this from a planning perspective through our time in this House and the other House. We are very familiar with the exacting timelines that exist from a planning perspective and they work well. The concern we have on this one is that if we have a very rigorous timeline, it may bring about a refusal at a point in time just to meet a deadline because all the information is not available to the agency in the first instanc…

I have to second that. She is a dear friend and Mr. Percy Foster as well, who is also present. I do not know the other person; I apologise. I thank Senator Noonan for his understanding. He is right; it is down to resources. However, just putting in a deadline for those issues does not put compulsion on the Government or the agency to tool up to meet that. It just requires a decision. Sadly, while the decision is the right thing to do, it may not be the ultimate result. The work may not get done in the time and we w…

I thank the Minister, Deputy Heydon, for his continued support and the full stretch of his Department, in particular, in the area of marine and fisheries. As the Minister indicated, the most significant element of the reduction in fishing quotas for 2026 is the reduction in the mackerel quota. It has had a very significant impact, not just on the catching sector but also on the processing sector because we control so much of that stock and have developed that fishery over many years. While there are many reasons a …

I genuinely thank everybody who participated in the debate today. There will be differences between us politically and some will seek to make political points. I fully understand; I know how that works but they are here because they care about the various communities they represent which, some greater than others, have a stake in the fishing industry. There are other counties that do not. We even had Deputy Maxwell who is from an inland county but has an interest in it. I appreciate the level of engagement and deba…

We could be here a long time if we got into that. They were ahead of the game in establishing their fishing rights and they were grandfathered in to the agreements that came. We are working off the back foot. When we joined the European Union our sector was very small and underdeveloped. It has done well. Some really great ingenuity went into it around the coastline in particular the pelagics and in other areas. They have really developed and now they are hit with the quota reductions. It is one thing having a quot…

I thank the Senator for raising this important matter. As he referenced, the programme for Government contains a commitment to prioritise equine welfare and to build on existing inspectorate supports across the country, ensuring a consistent approach to dealing with horse welfare. The welfare of equines is protected by legislation. However, I must emphasise that primary responsibility for protecting the welfare of equines rests with the owner or keeper. As the Senator has identified, in some cases owners or keepers…

I concur with the Senator regarding the volunteers involved in the various rescue efforts out there. I thank them sincerely for the work they do, and there is some financial support there. I take the Senator's point regarding legislation, but you can have all the legislative provisions you want,and there is a considerable amount, but there is not an operational campaign or capacity to address it. Listening to what he has said and thinking as we are discussing the matter, there is certainly room for a co-ordinated a…

I welcome the opportunity to be in the Seanad again to discuss fisheries and marine matters. I welcome the timely opportunity to discuss this important issue and the concerns affecting the fisheries and seafood sector. I know many of the Senators here have a very keen interest in and intimate knowledge of the industry and those who operate in it. I reassure the House that as Minister of State with responsibility for fisheries and the marine, I recognise the importance of maintaining a vibrant fishing sector both fo…