Vol. 443 No. 9
22 Mr. Harte asked the Minister for the Marine if he will lobby at EU level to put in place a fishery installation grant, similar to the farm installation scheme, to assist and encourage young trained fishermen to take over and run their own vessels.
As the Deputy may be aware, the farm installation scheme is a European Union funded scheme the aim of which is to encourage the earlier transfer of farms to young farmers. There is at the moment no similar provision within the EU fisheries framework for an early retirement scheme for fishermen. I am pushing strongly for the introduction of such a provision at Community level and for measures to encourage the entry to young trained fishermen to the industry.
The Deputy will be interested to know that the Council and the Commission have expressed a willingness to examine the possibility of introducing socio-economic measures including a pre-retirement scheme in the context of restructuring the Community fleet and it is expected that proposals in this regard will be brought forward before the end of the year.
Will the Minister agree that the present situation is untenable in that there is no help or assistance available to a young person who wants to take up fishing as a livelihood and to purchase a vessel? Two sectors are involved. In the processing sector there are favourable financial loans and grants available to the commercial sector, backed by the Government. In the catching sector no assistance is available. It is being discriminated against vis-à-vis other sectors. This has been the position since February 1993 and nothing is being done to assist it.
Something is being done. Since my appointment as Minister for the Marine I have been pursuing this scheme strongly at the Council of Ministers and I will continue to do so. Without causing friction between them, what is good for farmers is good for fishermen. In the context of national development, the fishing industry, fisheries, fishermen and their families have been left far behind. I am anxious to pursue this scheme. I would like to think that there would be no need for people of my own age to pursue this rather dangerous activity on the high seas sometimes in difficult and dangerous circumstances. We should strive to ensure that we have younger personnel operating the fishing fleet. It is my intention to do this.
That concludes ordinary Question Time for today.
