Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 4 March 2014
366. Deputy Jim Daly asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will utilise the provision in the new EMFF fund which allows member states to use EMFF funds to compensate for severe weather events such as those Ireland has experienced over the last two months; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10958/14]
View answerOn 12 February 2014, I informed the House that as part of its overall co-ordinated response to the impact of the recent unprecedented weather conditions, the Government had decided to allocate an additional €8.8 million for the repair of the publicly owned pier, harbour and slipway network linked to fisheries and aquaculture and to allocate up to €1.5 million to assist inshore fishermen in replacing lobster and shrimp pots lost or destroyed in the storms. In light of the additional funds now available, on 18 February my Department invited applications for funding from Local Authorities in respect of repair to fishery and aquaculture related harbours, piers and slipways damaged in the recent storm events. In relation to inshore fishermen, BIM has opened for applications, a new scheme providing aid of up to €2,400 for the replacement of pots lost in the storms. The Deputy will agree that these are significant interventions in the current economic circumstances and are a clear indication of this Government's commitment to assisting rural coastal communities and the inshore fishing sector with their recovery from the storms.
In relation to any specific payments to compensate for lost earnings, the Minister for Social Protection has overall responsibility for funding income support to individuals and families in all sectors who have been unable to work because of adverse weather conditions.
While the EU co-legislators have reached political agreement on the proposed Regulation establishing the EMFF, it will not be adopted in law by the EU institutions until probably June this year. Distribution of the EMFF amongst Member States has not yet been determined by the EU Commission and pending that Ireland has been allocated no specific funding under the EMFF at this point. My Department is working to prepare a new 7-year Operational Programme for the seafood sector under the EMFF. That Programme is dependent on the progress of the proposed Regulation and so is likely to be finalised towards the end of the year. Decisions on what to do with the finite resources available to Ireland under that Operational Programme will be a key element of that work and I am working closely with all stakeholders in making those hard choices between many competing and worthwhile investment priorities. It is thus premature to consider employing EMFF funds at this early stage in the development of the Operational Programme.
