Dáil Éireann debate -
Tuesday, 30 Mar 2010

Vol. 705 No. 4

Departmental Properties.

Deputy Joe Costello

I congratulate Deputy Connick on his appointment as Minister of State. I served with him on a number of committees and I am delighted he has been promoted.

The issue I raise is causing considerable discontent and concern in Wolfe Tone Close, which is a local authority residential complex largely populated by senior citizens. The Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform has acquired the lease on a property owned by Liam Carroll directly across the road, which is intended to be used for probation services. However, there is a great shortage of information in this regard and local residents are concerned that all sorts of anti-social behaviour will emanate from the premises. The layout of Wolfe Tone Close is similar to an amphitheatre with steps up to a gate, which is a long way removed from the street. There is room for 60 people to sit on the steps one above the other and there is also a curved space beside the gate, which was originally intended as a parking area for six to eight cars. There are two major spaces, therefore, in which anti-social behaviour and undesirable activity involving drink and drugs could take place if people attending the new premises across the road congregate there.

The residents protested last week. There was a large turnout not only of residents of the complex but also of many other people living in the area. A further protest march is planned tomorrow from the premises to Parnell Square to highlight the residents' opposition to the proposal and the lack of information provided by the Department.

There was no planning permission for the building and Dublin City Council has served an enforcement order on the premises. It is highly irresponsible of the Department to lease a building, refurbish it for a particular service it intends to provide, fail to apply for planning permission, find itself in breach of local authority planning laws and have an enforcement notice served on it. In addition, the local business community is up in arms and a meeting of business people is planned tomorrow evening to highlight the issue and to register their protest about what is happening because they also were not consulted. Neither the local residents or the business community were consulted about the issue and given an opportunity to have their say on it. Both groups are up in arms.

There is an overabundance of justice facilities in this part of the north inner city. We have stated again and again that we do not oppose the distribution of such facilities but it has not been done fairly. Almost every justice facility is on the north side, particularly in the inner city. Opening another facility in an overburdened community is not the way to go.

The Minister should not allow a premises to open without planning permission because that is bad form. He should seek an alternative location for this facility. There is plenty of space beside Mountjoy Prison on the North Circular Road, given the Department under the previous Minister, Michael McDowell, acquired Egan's Cash and Carry, which is lying idle. He should also look to the south side for a change to balance the distribution of justice facilities. Will the Minister of State outline how this private property held in the name of Liam Carroll and his wife was acquired by the Department?

Minister of State at the Department of Justice and Law Reform (Deputy Sean Connick)

I thank the Deputy for his good wishes on my appointment.

I am taking the matter on behalf of my colleague, the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform. Perhaps it is useful to place on the record of the House the level of funding provided by the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform, through the Probation Service, to community based projects that assist the Probation Service in its core work. This year alone the Department will provide funding in the region of €11 million to approximately 50 such projects across the country. To the best of the Minister's knowledge all of the projects are operating with community support and but for the voluntary participation of local people who agree to sit on the boards of management of the projects we could not support the various client groups in the community thus assisting in reintegration, improving job skills and generally assisting in increasing community safety.

Like all streams of taxpayers' funding it is important that we constantly monitor and evaluate such funding and I am pleased to tell the House that the Department undertook a value for money and policy review of all funded projects which was published on the Department's website on 2 September 2008. The conclusions were broadly favourable, recognising the importance of the support provided by community based projects to the work of the Probation Service. The Probation Service has a dedicated unit in place within its structures to implement the range of recommendations set out in the report and to constantly examine the added value provided by individual projects.

The project which is the subject of this Adjournment debate has operated in the Dublin 1 area for the past 15 years. I am sure the Deputy is fully aware the project provides an intensive supervision programme for male offenders, in the 20 to 25 years age group, in the greater Dublin area who are subject to Probation Service supervision. It can cater for up to 12 clients at any one time and the programme is delivered during office hours from Monday to Friday. Those who come to the project do so by appointment. The programme itself is delivered by a multidisciplinary team with the Probation Service as the lead agency. For the information of the House and by way of clarity I should say this project is not an addiction treatment centre nor is it a drop-in facility.

By way of background to the proposed move of the project to new premises on Wolfe Tone Street, I will provide some general history of the project. For the past 15 years the project has been accommodated in leased premises in Parnell Street, Dublin 1. These premises are no longer suitable for the longer term operation of the project and, in any event, the lease to the current premises will come to an end in a matter of months. As the recommendation was that the existing premises would not meet future requirements, the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform gave approval to the board of management of the project in August 2009 to tender for the fit-out of proposed new premises on Wolfe Tone Street. The work was advertised on e-tenders by the project and contracts were awarded last December. Work commenced in January with an expected completion date of May 2010 for the work.

As the project is fully funded by the Department, through the Probation Service, it fell to the Department to enter into a lease for the Wolfe Tone Street premises for use by the project in question. During the negotiations for the lease the Department was advised by the Chief State Solicitors Office and it had no reason to believe the planning permission for a change of use obtained by the landlord prior to the Department's interest in the ground floor space was not valid. However, the Department has been made aware that queries have been raised around the status of the planning permission in existence in recent times. Those matters are being examined further in consultation with our legal advisers.

The Minister trusts the Deputy will accept the bona fides of this project, which has been running in the inner city for a considerable number of years, supporting some of the most vulnerable citizens to lead more constructive lives. The project — based on its 15 years of experience — now needs new premises to continue its valuable work.

Litter Pollution.

Deputy Michael McGrath

I warmly congratulate my colleague and good friend, the Minister of State, Deputy Connick, on his appointment. I assure him that Deputy Thomas Byrne and I have had words with a certain journalist who wrote comments in a newspaper last Saturday. Both he and I are absolutely delighted at the Minister of State's elevation. I look forward to working with him.

I thank the Ceann Comhairle for giving me the opportunity to raise this issue tonight. I am sure all Members would agree that littering and illegal dumping is becoming a growing problem in every community across the country. This problem, with which we will have to get to grips, has worsened considerably in recent months. From talking to other colleagues it is clear that it is a nationwide problem. A small minority of people who are littering our communities and engaging in illegal dumping are causing a blight on our landscape. We will have to tackle the situation in a meaningful and serious way. From the number of complaints coming to my constituency office and from personal observations the situation is deteriorating. At a time when we are seeking to exploit the economic potential of the tourism industry in this country we need to be careful about the reputation we will get given the level of litter and illegal dumping that is apparent on our streets, country roads and in every community across the country. Recently the West Cork Tourism Co-operative Society Limited managed, after a huge amount of work, to reinstate the Cork to Swansea ferry link, which comes into my constituency in Ringaskiddy in Cork South Central. What impression will it give to tourists arriving there who are driving to west Cork or elsewhere to observe litter and black bags of rubbish dumped at the roadside? That sends out a terrible signal about us as a country. If that is the impression with which people leave this country it is unrealistic to think they will return. In addition, how many people will they tell about their experience?

That gives rise to a number of questions about the level of enforcement by local authorities and the Garda who is also empowered under the legislation to issue on-the-spot fines. It is clear that not enough fines are being issued. Is there a lack of consistency across the country in terms of the number of fines being issued and the level of enforcement? How many cases are being brought to court where people do not pay the on-the-spot fine and one is levied?

I was interested to read that the Probation Service has undertaken an initiative in recent months whereby persons who have been convicted of minor crimes are being required by the courts to do community service and the Probation Service is engaging with local authorities to get those people involved in a graffiti removal programme. My suggestion, which I mentioned to the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, is that the Probation Service would extend that idea to get people involved in litter picking and in cleaning our roads and streets. It would be a suitable payback to society if people convicted of minor crimes were required by the courts to carry out community service. I urge the Minister to seriously consider the suggestion.

We must also consider whether a fine of €150 is sufficient. Perhaps it is, but it is not being levied often enough. We are all well aware of the huge amount of voluntary work being done by tidy towns groups around the country, residents associations within estates, community groups and the Irish Business against Litter group. Currently, they are literally swimming against the tide of litter and illegal dumping which is becoming a scourge in society.

We must first acknowledge that the situation is getting worse. Businesses must play their part. Many fast food outlets are still not fulfilling their responsibilities. Vacant local authority housing stock is also a problem. We have had some successes such as the plastic bag levy, for example, but much more needs to be done. The positive suggestion I make tonight is that the Minister would contact the Probation Service with a view to extending the programme of graffiti removal to include picking up litter and cleaning areas affected by illegal dumping.

Deputy Seán Connick

I thank my colleague and friend, Deputy Michael McGrath, for his good wishes. I also thank him for tabling on the Adjournment this important matter that affects each and every one of us citizens. I am replying on behalf of the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government.

Under the Litter Pollution Acts, the primary management and enforcement responses to litter must come from the local authorities. Under this legislation it is the local authorities that are responsible for keeping public places, including public roads, clear of litter as far as is practicably possible. Local authorities take this duty seriously, as is seen in the number of litter fines issued, which have increased from 7,563 in 1998 to 27,825 in 2008, a three and one half fold increase in a ten year period.

In acknowledgement of their role, the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government has allocated €1.1 million this year from the Environment Fund to provide grants to local authorities for public education and awareness activities in regard to litter and graffiti. The Minister would welcome and will consider any new measures that local authorities might identify to tackle the problems of litter and illegal dumping and his Department will continue to co-operate with the local authorities in dealing with this ongoing issue.

Considerable progress has also been made by the relevant statutory agencies in dealing with illegal waste activity. In particular, since the establishment of the Office of Environmental Enforcement in 2003, enforcement has been better structured through the establishment of a national enforcement network. Annual supporting funding from the environment fund of over €7.5 million has led to some 120 additional local authority enforcement personnel and a greatly enhanced response on the ground. However, litter and dumping problems will only be resolved through a partnership approach in which all sectors, including local authorities, business, community groups, residents' associations, schools and individuals, play their part. To this end, the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, Deputy Gormley, has provided financial support from the environment fund to a number of anti-litter initiatives aimed at influencing people's behaviour in regard to their method of disposing of litter. These initiatives include the National Spring Clean campaign, the Irish Business Against Litter league and a grant to the protecting upland and rural environments, PURE, project, which is operating in the Wicklow-Dublin upland area.

The benefits of the support provided to all sections of the community are clear from the improved results presented by both the national litter pollution monitoring system and the Irish Business Against Litter league. These results show a gradual but steady improvement in recent years in regard to the extent of litter pollution countrywide. Under the national litter pollution monitoring system, almost 70% of the country was designated as either litter free or only slightly littered in 2008. Irish Business Against Litter has reported that 65% of towns surveyed are now classified as "clean to European norms".

Despite these achievements, the Minister is aware that litter and illegal dumping continue to present an ongoing challenge. He will continue to monitor trends in litter pollution and, in co-operation with the local authorities, ensure that measures are adopted and resources are focused on those areas where the need for action is greatest.

Fishing Quotas.

Deputy Joe McHugh

I congratulate the Minister of State, Deputy Connick, on his appointment. He is entering a Department that requires a bit of common sense and persistence. Above all, leadership is required. Leadership is required not in terms of leading the Department but in terms of leading the fishing community. The latter feels it has been devoid of a voice. It has common-sense, practical solutions to put forward and does its own conservation-related scientific research. It knows the long-term sustainability of fisheries depends on sustainable fishing practices. Fishermen are pragmatic and want their sons to enter the industry. They want to work with the Minister of State. I hope the Minister of State will work with them. I know he will based on my experience of working with him to date in Leinster House. I congratulate him and look forward to working with him.

I raise the issue of spurdog because I have been speaking to many fishermen along the coast in my constituency, Donegal North-East. This is a coastal issue. In 2008, 390 tonnes of spurdog were fished. There was a quota of 195 tonnes last year. All of a sudden, this was reduced to zero tonnes on the basis of so-called scientific research recommending a blanket ban.

Area VIa, with which the Minister of State will become familiar, comprises 23% of Irish waters. The removal of the quota does not take into account the local perspective or the fact that one could engage in sustainable fishing on a small scale with boats under 18 m. There are not many of them anymore because, as the Minister of State knows, there has been a decommissioning scheme for boat owners. Incidentally, the scheme did not result in a penny being given to the crews who worked on the boats. There are people who are still willing to work on a small scale and in a sustainable manner.

Area 39E3 is a small pocket just above north County Donegal which takes in the fishing area north of Fanad Head or Greencastle. Scottish and Northern Ireland boats are fishing in the area but local Donegal boats are not allowed to. The fishermen are fishing for a shellfish. Irish boats will not be allowed fish in the waters until 1 April. There is something amiss here. There is deep-felt anger and resentment, not towards other fishermen but towards the rules that make circumstances unfair. The unfairness is almost palpable every time one meets the fishermen in Donegal. In the last referendum on the Lisbon treaty the nation voted "Yes" but Donegal voted "No". The Minister should analyse the strong "No" vote from the fishing community.

The Marine Institute has stated there are 350,000 seals off the north-west coast of Scotland that come across the north-west territory. Each seal requires 10 kg of fish per day, which gives an overall weight of 35 tonnes. This equates to 1,000 fish boxes per day. We talk about conservation and sustainability but that is a factor that the Minister of State should consider. He should listen to the fishermen and determine how we can make progress on this matter.

Deputy Dinny McGinley

I thank Deputy McHugh for allowing me a minute of his very limited time. I congratulate the Minister of State on his appointment and hope to see him in Donegal, particularly Killybegs, before long.

Spurdog or dogfish, now known as rock salmon, was primarily a catch for the inshore fleet, the small 20 ft. or 30 ft. half-decker vessels. It was not meant for the deep-sea pelagic fleet at all and was often the bread and butter for the inshore fleet.

At present, there is nothing happening in the north west. The inshore fleet is tied up because the box referred to by Deputy McHugh, area VI, is completely closed. There is no point in allowing a quota for spurdog unless one opens area VI to the inshore fleet. I refer to the small fishermen fishing out of Arranmore island and my village of Bunbeg. There is only one boat now although there used to be 30 or 40. It will open the Minister of State's eyes when he visits.

Spurdog fishing was the bread and butter of the fishermen to whom I refer. Spurdog was only a bycatch for the deep-sea fleet when we had a quota. We have none at present. The essential difference between the deep-sea and small inshore fleets is that spurdog represents the bread and butter of the latter. If the Minister of State changes his mind on this matter, he should allow for fishing in area VI by fishermen in small craft of 30 ft. or 40 ft. in length.

Deputy Seán Connick

I thank my colleagues for their good wishes on my appointment to my new portfolio. I have been reading into my brief over recent days. It has been a baptism of fire and I spent yesterday in Brussels. I have been learning the names of the boxes, including VIIa and VIIb, and about associated issues. I met the strategy group today and many people from the Deputies' constituencies.

I am grateful for this opportunity to address the house in my new capacity as Minister of State with responsibility for fisheries. I look forward to a robust and, I hope, creative exchange of views on the issue at hand, but also on the myriad challenges that will face the fishing industry over my tenure in this portfolio.

The topic for today stems in the main from the conservation measures for whitefish affecting Area VI, west of Donegal and off Scotland, which were adopted at the 2008 December Fisheries Council. These conservation measures impacted directly on some of our vessels fishing in the north west.

An associated issue, which has been referred to, is the question of quota for spurdog. The scientific advice of the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea, ICES, is that the stock of spurdog or dogfish is depleted, that there should be no targeted fishery therefor and that the bycatch in mixed fisheries should be reduced to the lowest possible level. On the basis of this advice, the Council regulation fixing for 2010 the fishing opportunities for certain fish stocks and groups of fish stocks, applicable in Community waters and for Community vessels, made no allowance for a directed fishery for spurdog. By-catches, under certain specific conditions, are permitted up to 10% of the 2009 quota levels established in Regulation (EC) No 43/2009. Catches not complying with these conditions or exceeding these quantities shall be promptly released unharmed to the extent practicable.

In effect this means that Irish vessels may catch up to a maximum of approximately 19 tonnes of spurdog-dogfish as a by catch in 2010. At the regular monthly whitefish meeting between officials of my Department and fishing industry representatives on 22 January 2010, the Federation of Irish Fishermen proposed that for the month of February 2010 a by-catch provision of 2% for this stock should be applicable to all vessels. This proposal was accepted by the former Minister of State, Deputy Killeen, and was later replicated for the March and April management periods. This management arrangement will be kept under constant review to ensure that our overall limit is not exceeded.

To return to the main matter at hand, and without going too much into the technical details, the conservation measures introduced in December 2008 defined minimum mesh sizes, other aspects of fishing gears and geographical areas, in particular the area which is deemed to have the highest concentration of cod, haddock and whiting in shallower waters. This is defined and commonly known as the French line. Certain types of fishing is prohibited or restricted, and vessels operating in the defined area are required to use a larger mesh size than is generally applicable in western waters.

Against a very difficult background and a determined Commission position, Ireland succeeded in getting limited concessions, which reduced, to some degree the impacts on our vessels in particular our smaller vessels. Vessels under 15 m are permitted to use smaller mesh size than the larger vessels. However as the main fishery being pursued by these vessels is the megrim fishery, the mesh size defined for all vessels is too large and has resulted in this important fishery being uneconomic for our fishermen.

The Commission was of the firm view that the measures are essential for the conservation of cod, haddock and whiting stocks. Scientific advice for these stocks and in particular cod and whiting is that they are depleted and must be rebuilt. While I fully accept the scientific advice, I consider, however, that the measures taken are disproportionate as they impact adversely on the megrim fishery which is of significant financial importance to our vessels operating in the area. As I have stated, these measures were introduced for the first time in December 2008 as emergency measures by the Commission. The then Minister of State, Deputy Killeen, immediately sought amendments to these measures and brought forward proposals in consultation with the industry which would both deliver on the conservation requirements for cod, haddock and whiting and preserve a viable megrim fishery. The Minister of State sought to have these amendments introduced as part of the new technical conservation measures, TCM, regulation. As the Deputies are aware, this failed to be adopted during the Fisheries Council in November 2009, despite a late compromise being tabled by the Swedish Presidency.

Ireland and the UK worked closely together with both sets of industries to amend the 2009 provisions. As there was no agreement at Council, the Commission introduced transitionary measures which substantially copied those in place for 2009 and did not take cognisance of the changes necessary for Ireland's megrim fishery. For this Ireland voted against the transitional measures and the UK also voted against them. The European Parliament and the Council under the co-decision procedure must now consider the full TCM proposal.

The current situation is not satisfactory and has been the subject of ongoing debate and lobbying by ourselves and the UK, particularly Scotland. As recently as last Thursday at the EU Fisheries Working Group in Brussels, the Commission advised it will withdraw the TCM proposal which was not agreed by Council last November when the Presidency compromise failed and transitionary measures were agreed to run until mid 2011. It now intends to propose, as part of the overall CFP reform package, a new technical measures regulation which will take account of co-decision procedure and which considers a fuller impact assessment. The new regulation will be part of the CFP reform package expected to be released in spring 2011 and concluded before end 2012 and it therefore proposes to extend the transitionary measures currently in place until end 2012.

Ireland has consistently, both at ministerial and official levels, set out our difficulties with the 2008 technical measures. Deputy Killeen has made very clear that this situation is not acceptable, and I fully agree. He secured a commitment from the Commission at last Decembers Fisheries Council to the effect that:

The Council and the Commission take note of requests by some Member States to modify existing technical measures for the ICES Zone VI in advance of the agreed overall reform of the technical measures rules for mid 2011. The Commission will consider these requests and where appropriate present relevant proposals, if possible in the course of first half of 2010.

From an Irish perspective it is vitally important that the revisions envisaged are introduced in 2010, and with that in mind I will vigorously pursue the Commission on this and insist that it honours its commitment. I will work closely with my UK colleague who has similar concerns in this matter. In addition, I intend to continue the consultation process with the Federation of Irish Fishermen on this matter with a clear view to strengthening our efforts to have a satisfactory conclusion on the issue.

I am looking forward to the challenges facing me with this portfolio. It is fair to say that I am excited with the prospect of working in tandem with the fishing industry, other stakeholders and this House to deliver a strong, vibrant and viable Irish seafood sector and to promoting the best interests of our coastal communities dependent on the fishing industry at National, EU and international levels.