Three political parties have promised to appoint a junior marine minister if returned to government.
The commitment has been made in the manifestos published by Fine Gael, Fianna Fáil and Sinn Féin, with the latter party including the most extensive promises in relation to the marine sector.
The Green Party makes no specific commitment on a ministerial post, and says it will designate 50 per cent of Irish territorial waters as marine protected areas.
The Green Party also wants to ban pair trawling and offshore salmon farming, with a switch to “close loop” onshore fish farms.
The Labour Party promises a review of Ireland’s fish quotas with a redistribution of high value species such as mackerel to ensure smaller vessels receive a fair share.
The Seafood Ireland Alliance, comprising five Irish seafood organisations, singles out the “strong support” by Sinn Féin for the marine sector in its manifesto for the current general election campaign.
The alliance contacted all the main political parties for copies of their manifestos.
The alliance welcomed Fine Gael’s manifesto support for a dedicated Minister of State for Fisheries and a review of the EU Common Fisheries Policy (CFP).
“Should the party return to Government, we will work with them to establish a five-year strategy for developing the fishing sector,” Irish Fish Producers’ Organisation (IFPO) chief executive Aodh O Donnell, whose organisation is one of five groups in the alliance, said.
Killybegs Fishermen’s Organisation (KFO) chief executive Dominic Rihan said the alliance shared Fine Gael’s ambition to deliver a plan for the sector within 100 days of the new government taking office.
Irish Fish Processors and Exporters Association (IFPEA) chief executive Brendan Byrne described the Fine Gael manifesto as “an assertive stance to protect our waters and this vital sector of the Irish economy”.
Patrick Murphy of the Irish South and West Fish Producers Organisation (IS&WFPO) welcomed the Fine Gael undertaking to have more effective liaison and improved engagement with the industry at department levels.
Fianna Fáil’s promise to appoint a dedicated junior marine minister who would “work closely” with a Cabinet minister has been described as “positive” by the alliance.
The alliance noted that Fianna Fáil’s marine section in its manifesto was “not as comprehensive” as that of the other two parties but said it was “encouraging that Fianna Fáil will advocate for CFP reforms that better reflect Ireland’s share of fish species caught in its waters, ensuring fairer quotas”.
Fianna Fáil also promised to explore incentives for boats to land their catch in Irish ports, stimulating the domestic processing sector.
The alliance welcomed what it described as “the strong support by Sinn Féin for the seafood sector and the commitment to robustly defend Ireland's marine interests as outlined in their manifesto”.
Sinn Féin’s manifesto also promises a “Fish Ireland” office in Brussels, and a promise to conduct an independent root and branch review of the Irish fishing and seafood industry.
Sinn Féin has promised to conduct an “independent oversight and complaints body for the Sea Fisheries Protection Authority (SFPA), and IFPO chief executive Aodh O’Donnell said this was welcome as “the legislation relating to this control authority is outdated”.
The Sinn Fein manifesto also highlights the need to engage with EU fisheries ministers and Irish industry representatives to identify, negotiate and secure new fishing and quota opportunities
John Lynch of the Irish South and East Fish Producers Organisation (IS&EFPO) complimented Sinn Fein on its commitment to ensure that “fishermen and their representatives are actively engaged in the process of establishing Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and in designating sites for offshore renewable energy developments”
“The fishing industry is not against offshore wind farms or the creation of MPAs, but we do want to be treated fairly and the impacts on our livelihoods of such developments fully acknowledged and properly evaluated,”Lynch said.
