Vol. 426 No. 6
6 Proinsias De Rossa asked the Minister for the Marine if, in view of repeated incidents involving submarines snagging the fishing gear of trawlers, the Government will seek international agreement for a ban on submarine traffic through the Irish Sea, or at least, a requirement that all submarine traffic would travel on the surface, especially in established fishing grounds; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
I share the Deputy's concern at the dangers posed by submarines to fishing vessels and their crews.
As Minister with responsibility for safety of life at sea as well as for the fishing sector, I am committed to taking every possible opportunity to focus the attention of the international maritime community on the hazards posed by submarines and to highlight the need for constant vigilance on the part of those who operate such vessels.
I would remind the House that under international law submarines travelling on the surface have the right of innocent passage, without notification, through territorial waters. They may, on the other hand, pass freely through international waters on the surface or submerged.
Nonetheless we have continued to make our concerns known at the appropriate international fora, notably the United Nations and the International Maritime Organisation. Indeed, it was at the Irish Government's express initiative that the General Assembly of the IMO unanimously passed a resolution, in November 1991, on the avoidance by submerged submarines of fishing vessels and their fishing gear.
I would like to restate for the House the terms of this resolution, which are as follows:
Firstly, to ensure that submarines navigating through areas where vessels are known to fish use all available means for determining the presence of such vessels and their fishing gear; secondly, to ensure that a submerged submarine, if information on the presence of a fishing vessel and its fishing gear is available, will avoid that fishing vessel and any fishing gear connected to it.
The IMO has requested member countries to bring these recommendations to the attention of authorities responsible for operating submarines and to develop local arrangements to promote safety in areas used by fishing vessels and submarines.
I am keeping the situation under close review; should further action at international level be required, the Deputy can rest assured that I, in my dual capacity as Minister for Defence and Marine, and my colleague, the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs, will initiate all possible steps to ensure that the dangers posed by submarine movements in the fishing grounds around our coast are minimised.
I thank the Minister for that assurance. Since the motion was adopted by the IMO in September last year there was a further incident in the Irish Sea where a trawler from Kilkeel, the MFV Lupina was dragged as a result of its nets being snagged by a US submarine. Will the Minister, as a matter of urgency, seek to have submarine traffic banned completely from recognised fishing areas? There is a common demand on the British and Irish sides for this kind of ban, particularly in the Irish Sea. One wonders why this traffic continues when we are told that the Cold War is over and, presumably, there is no longer a need for this subterranean traffic.
I do not disagree with the Deputy's point and I will make our views known in this regard. I understand the incident to which the Deputy referred related to the MFV Lupina. On 16 September 1992 an American nuclear submarine the USS Sturgeon snagged the nets of the Kilkeel based fishing trawler MFV Lupina in the north channel off Scotland. This incident is at present the subject of a US Navy inquiry. In the unlikely event that I can get hold of that report I will let the Deputy have a copy of it.
As I understand the position, submarine traffic is instructed to remain up to 1,500 metres away from where trawlers operate. Without going into the details of whatever inquiry may be under way, it seems unlikely that a submarine could snag the fishing nets of a trawler if it was 1,500 metres away.
The nets could be 1,500 metres from the trawler.
They could be, but it is unlikely to occur as frequently as it seems to occur in the Irish Sea. Has the Minister made inquiries as to the precise circumstances relating to that incident? Was what is known as "sucker" fishing being practised by the submarine concerned, where it lies under fishing vessels to avoid detection by satellite?
The question addressed by the Deputy is very complex. As I do not have the competence to respond as I would like, I will, if I can, get the information for the Deputy. The whole question of conventions and legislation relating to submarines should properly be addressed to the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs. He has a serious role to play in this whole area.
Let us come to deal with other questions, No. 7.
On a point of information——
Sorry, Deputy, are you involved in priority questions?
No, I thought you had finished with priority questions.
Yes, I have.
The Minister holds two portfolios — Marine and Defence. If it is intended to take questions as listed on the Order Paper, Defence questions will never be answered, except for the odd priority question.
The procedure is that at the half way stage, at about 3.20 p.m., I shall be calling questions addressed to the Minister for Defence. Is that satisfactory? Agreed.
I will be changing my uniform.
