Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 8 July 2014
582. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the further investment he will seek for fishery harbours in 2015 to supplement available funding under the EU maritime and fisheries fund. [28991/14]
View answerThe EU Regulation establishing the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund was published on 20 May 2014. Following months of intense lobbying and negotiation, I announced on 12 June 2014 that I had secured €148 million from the new Fund for the period 2014 to 2020 for the development of the Irish seafood industry and the coastal communities that depend upon it.
The EMFF Fund will provide support for our fishing fleet to meet the challenges of the new discards ban. It will support the development of the seafood processing sector, a sustainable aquaculture industry and the communities that depend on a vibrant seafood industry.
My Department has been working since 2013 on developing a new Operational Programme setting out the arrangements for spending Ireland’s allocation under the Fund and has engaged with stakeholders on a number of occasions to date. Further public consultation and strategic environmental assessment will take place over the summer 2014. The new Operational Programme must be submitted to the European Commission for adoption before the end of 2014.
My Department administers the Fishery Harbour and Coastal Infrastructure Development Programme. This programme funds capital works at the six state owned Fishery Harbour Centres on an annual basis. The six Fishery Harbour Centres owned, managed and maintained by my Department are Killybegs, Howth, Dunmore East, Castletownbere, Dingle and Rossaveel.
Investment in Local Authority owned piers and harbours remains in the first instance the responsibility of the relevant local authority. However my Department has in previous years provided funding for the development and repair of Local Authority owned piers and harbours subject to the availability of exchequer funding.
Decisions on future Fishery Harbour and Coastal Infrastructure Development Programmes will be taken having due consideration to budgetary constraints and overall National priorities. Any possible EMFF allocation to fishery harbour measures is subject to final decisions on overall priorities for the seafood sector and to ex-ante evaluation by independent consultants of the appropriateness of such measures.
