Written Answers - Safety at Sea.
Pat Rabbitte
Question:
31
Mr. Rabbitte
asked the
Minister for the Marine and Natural Resources
the progress, if any, which has been made in regard to implementation of the recommendations of the Fishery Vessel Safety Review Group; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
[22243/97]
As Minister with responsibility for safety of life at sea I am committed to achieving significant improvements in the area of fishing vessel safety. To that end, I intend to implement the recommendations and objectives of the Fishing Vessel Safety Review Group to the greatest extent and with utmost speed which resources will permit. Considerable progress has already been made in this regard.
Safety training is vital to protect the lives of fishing vessel crews and the Department has been working closely with BIM in order to ensure that new and more accessible training facilities are provided for fishermen at strategic locations around the coast. Earlier this year BIM launched two mobile coastal training units for this very purpose and I understand that these facilities have already delivered basic safety training to around 250 fishermen. Another significant development in this regard is the establishment of a new fisheries training facility at Castletownbere. BIM has also increased its safety skills instruction capacity through the recruitment of three additional training staff.
The absence of mandatory social insurance cover for fishermen was highlighted by the review group as the reason for many trained deckhands leaving the fishing fleet. This situation has since been addressed and share fishermen now qualify for full PRSI cover.
I can also report progress in the area of on-shore marine radio communications. The Department has installed new medium frequency transmitters at Belmullet and Rosslare which will enhance radio coverage and improve emergency response to fishing vessels operating off the north west coast and in the Irish Sea. In addition, it is proposed to upgrade the Irish Marine Emergency Service radio communications network through the installation of VHF digital selective calling equipment at coast radio stations.
Having regard to the modernisation of fishing vessels, I announced at the end of October an £11 million investment in the modernisation of the Irish fishing fleet. This involved some £3 million in EU grant aid for 112 fleet modernisation projects under Ireland's Operational Programme for Fisheries 1994-99. This investment is aimed primarily at the whitefish fleet to enhance safety on board vessels and will help maximise the return to fishermen and maintain jobs in the sector.
I am also working to put in place, with EU agreement, a new grant aid scheme to support investment in new whitefish vessels. I am also pursuing other options which will assist investment in the fleet notably to make the industry atractive to providers of capital by examining the scope for the provision of fiscal incentives.
In addition, agreement has been effectively secured on Ireland's national programme under the EU Fleet programme 1997-2002, MGP IV. The MGP IV programme for Ireland provides that safety improvements may be excluded, on a case by case basis, from vessel tonnage calculations, for the purposes of the programme. The objective is to ensure that vessel owners are not penalised for making safety improvements to their vessels.
The review group recommended the introduction of comprehensive safety regulations for fishing vessels and their crews. The necessary administrative and technical staffing resources to progress this considerable body of legislation are currently being put in place. Three additional marine surveyors are expected to be appointed shortly and recruitment of an additional marine radio surveyor is under way. These surveyors will afford the technical expertise required in the drafting of the safety regulations and in their subsequent enforcement by means of a strict inspection regime.
The implementation of an overall safety strategy for the sea fishing sector will be steered by a fishing vessel safety management committee which is in the process of being established. A fishing vessel safety unit is also being set up within the Department to support the work of the committee and facilitate the development of a co-ordinated safety programme for the industry.
A safety awareness campaign which will aim to highlight safety issues of particular relevance to fishermen is currently being developed by the Department. Earlier this year the Department's marine safety working group published a series of safety brochures entitled Safety on the Water. This included a practical booklet on fishing vessel machinery failure, which is the main reason for emergency call-outs to fishing vessels in distress. Skippers of all fishing vessels on the register have been sent copies of this booklet for distribution to their crews.
The fishing industry itself has a vital role to play in developing a safety culture among fishermen. Not least to inform the industry's own role and responsibilities it is clearly necessary to maintain ongoing dialogue with fishermen's organisations on safety. Department officials had constructive discussions with industry representatives only last week on the implementation of recommendations in the report of the fishing vessel safety review group.
