The Sea Fisheries Protection Authority has acknowledged that the Master of the Danish Fishing Vessel MV Ruth objected to the SFPA's process for weighing upon landing, at Killybegs in County Donegal on Thursday, March 31st.

In a statement, the Authority says: "The Master of the vessel and the operator were offered the use of an industry-owned water separator which would preserve the quality of the fish during the process. They opted not to avail of this and subsequently, the Master of the vessel chose to leave port. The SFPA intends to notify the relevant regulatory authority of the EU Member State in which this vessel is flagged of this interaction."

The SFPA has been under intensive criticism from the fishing industry because of its rigid imposition of EU regulations.

The Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority (SFPA) says a new control plan is expected to come into effect on May 1st.

This is subject to approval by the European Commission, which withdrew Ireland’s control plan for weighing fish catches a year ago due to lack of confidence in the Irish monitoring system.

The SFPA said a new control plan to enable the derogation of weighing of fishery products after transport in Ireland has now been submitted to the European Commission “with a view to achieving permanent approval”.

Once approval is secured, it would be adopted by Ireland and would come into force from May 1st, the authority said.

The SFPA said it “has been working intensively to move from interim arrangements to develop a fair and effective permanent control plan”.

It said the objective was an approved plan that “balances the requirements of the industry whilst also enabling meaningful control to manage real noncompliance risks”.

“The SFPA believes the control plan it has submitted addresses significant EU Commission concerns surrounding Ireland’s control measures and the risk of non-compliance with the rules of the Common Fisheries Policy, particularly in pelagic bulk landings to Ireland which resulted in the Commission’s revoking of Ireland’s weighing-after-transport control plan in 2021,” it said.

The interim plan initiated from January 1st of this year is due to expire on April 30th, so there was a degree of urgency to ensure a permanent arrangement is in place.

The default provision of EU legislation is that all wild-caught fishery products have to be weighed immediately at transport by operators.

There is potential for a derogation to allow weighing to take place after transport but that requires EU commission approval of a plan to “manage compliance risks arising from that practice”.

Last year’s withdrawal of the plan followed an EU audit in 2018 of controls for Ireland’s pelagic fisheries in Killybegs, Co Donegal.

The 2018 audit had identified irregularities, including the alleged manipulation of weighing systems in some instances.

The SFPA said that these irregularities were “subsequently confirmed in an administrative inquiry” that it conducted.

The Irish industry had reacted angrily to the EU move, seeking sight of the audit which was refused. Killybegs Fishermen’s Organisation chief executive Sean O’Donoghue said the European Commission was “playing the role of judge and jury, with the fishing industry being refused the basic right to establish what it might stand accused of”.

A fishing industry leader has questioned the reason for the sudden resignation of a member of the Sea Fisheries Protection Authority (SFPA).

Tim Donovan stood down from the SFPA – the State’s seafood industry regulator - in early February after just over seven months in the post.

Mr Donovan had been assistant director of the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), responsible for an area extending from Canada to North Carolina and including the US Great Lakes region.

He joined the SFPA in late June 2021, and was, for a time, the sole member of the SFPA until the appointment of Paschal Hayes as executive chair last December to succeed Dr Susan Steele.

Dr Steele was appointed executive director of the European Fisheries Control Agency in Spain last year.

SFPA staff have been taking industrial action since January over terms and conditions.

In a letter to colleagues, Mr Donovan said he understood this was a “difficult time” for the organisation.

He said he appreciated “the strain this announcement will cause to the organisation”, but he had decided to resign from his position as authority member in discussions with his family.

“The authority position is of great importance to this organisation and deserves a member fully dedicated to the mission and the energy to fulfil the strategic goals”.

“Unfortunately, at this time in my life, I no longer have that energy and the SFPA deserves a more engaged authority member”, he said.

“I have chosen retirement based on my US pension and to spend more quality time with my family in West Cork,” he wrote.

Irish South and West Fish Producers Organisation (IS&WFPO) chief executive Patrick Murphy said there were “ questions” to be asked about what he described as a “surprise resignation” by Mr Donovan.

“We have an SFPA which is in the middle of an industrial dispute with its staff, and it is now back to one authority member with the resignation of Mr Donovan,” he said.

“This comes at a time when we have a Naval Service which is not fully equipped to monitor and police our waters,” Mr Murphy said.

Asked to comment on Mr Donovan’s resignation and whether this occurred after a meeting with a senior Department of Marine official, the department said that “the SFPA Authority member concerned tendered their resignation to the minister in accordance with the requirements of Section 47 (10) (a) of the Sea Fisheries Maritime Jurisdiction Act 2006”.

Asked if the SFPA had the statutory authority to continue with just one authority member in place, both the SFPA and the department said this was permitted under Section 47 (1) of the SFPA Act (Sea Fisheries Maritime Jurisdiction Act 2006 ).

“Tim Donovan made an important contribution during his time with the SFPA. The SFPA acknowledges and thanks him for his work to promote and support sea-fisheries protection,” the SFPA said.

Both the SFPA and the department confirmed that an open competition to fill the vacancy would be advertised by the Public Appointments Service shortly.

Some 87 per cent of regular seafood eaters like to know their fish was caught sustainably, a survey by the Sea Fisheries Protection Authority (SFPA) has found.

While quality is the main priority of Irish consumers (96%), knowing fish and shellfish has been caught legally (85%) and in a sustainable manner (87%) have emerged as major concerns, the State’s sea fisheries and seafood regulator says.

Some 87 per cent also prioritised price, while 92 per cent of those surveyed believe more should be done to safeguard the sustainability of Ireland’s marine resources, the survey found.

The research was conducted online by Amárach Research on a total sample of 1,500 adults from December 8th -21st, 2021.

The SFPA says the survey reported overwhelming support for the reporting of illegal fishing to the authorities (90%) with most (77%) consumers saying that they would not buy fish if they knew it was illegally caught.

Traceability is also a factor, especially amongst younger consumers, the SFPA says.

Almost half (48%) of those aged under 35 said that having greater confidence in the traceability of a product would encourage them to eat more fish regularly.

The survey found that most regular consumers of fish (82%), especially in coastal regions, are willing to change their buying habits to reduce their impact on marine resources.

Almost three quarters (seven out of ten respondents) stated they only want to buy fish in a way that does not adversely impact marine resources.

“Like many other parts of the economy, the sea-fisheries and seafood sector has seen some constriction of activity and sales due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, “SFPA authority member Tim Donovan said.

“The resilience of the sector and the potential for further development of domestic and overseas markets is widely acknowledged,” he said.

Consumer trust in the quality, provenance and safety of Ireland’s seafood produce is critical to achieving these ambitions and cannot be overstated,” he said.

“ It is essential to the reputation and future success of the sea-fisheries and seafood sectors which so many communities around the coast rely on for a living,” he added.

Ireland’s seafood economy is valued at an estimated €1.09bn n per annum with domestic consumption accounting for 37% of this figure, according to the latest figures from Bord Iascaigh Mhara (BIM)

Currently, the industry supports over 16,000 livelihoods with over 1,994 Irish-registered vessels, 309 aquaculture production units and 160 seafood processors, BIM states.

The SFPA says that anyone who wishes to report suspected illegal sea-fishing activity can contact its confidential line at 1800 76 76 76, by email at [email protected] or through the SFPA’s website, SFPA.ie/Confidential-Line.

Minister for the Marine Charlie McConalogue has announced the appointment of Paschal Hayes as executive chair and member of the Sea Fisheries Protection Authority (SFPA).

The appointment follows the recent Public Appointments Service (PAS) open recruitment process, the minister said.

The executive chair will "lead and guide the SFPA organisation over the coming years and will be responsible for securing efficient and effective enforcement of sea fisheries and food safety law; promoting compliance while detecting and deterring contraventions ", McConalogue said

Paschal Hayes has most recently worked as Principal Officer in the Department of Agriculture, Food & the Marine and led the Irish Managing Authority for the European Maritime Fisheries Fund (EMFF).

McConalogue said that in this role he has facilitated the sustainable development of the Irish seafood sector through the delivery of Ireland’s EMFF Operational Programme and management of sustainable inshore fisheries in compliance with the Common Fisheries Policy and environmental law.

He also led the successful multiannual project to remediate Haulbowline Island. His previous responsibilities included licensing and registration of Ireland’s Fishing Fleet and management of the six-state owned Fishery Harbour Centres (FHCs) at Howth, Dunmore East, Castletownbere, Dingle, Killybegs and Ros an Mhíl. Paschal holds a BSc and a Diploma in Information Technology from Dublin City University and a Master’s degree in Government and Public Policy from University College Cork.

Announcing the appointment, McConalogue said “I am pleased to appoint Paschal Hayes as executive chair of the SFPA. I am confident that Paschal will meet the exacting standards of public sector leadership required for this complex and evolving regulatory sector and that he will manage and lead the SFPA over the coming years to ensure a sustainable and compliant industry that supports coastal communities dependant on fishing and secures our fish stocks for future generations of fishers.”

Mr Hayes will take up his new post on 14th January.

Meanwhile, the SFPA says that a control plan for Irish fisheries management has been approved by the European Commission for the first four months of next year, more details here

The Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority (SFPA) says that a control plan for Irish fisheries management has been approved by the European Commission for the first four months of next year.

In a statement issued today, the SFPA said the plan has been signed off for implementation from January 1st to 30th April 2022, covering the spring pelagic fishery season, as well as demersal fishing activity

"During this period, the SFPA will continue its work towards securing European Commission approval of a permanent control plan that will provide certainty for the industry along with eliminating concerns on Ireland’s control measures and will minimize the risk of the industry’s non-compliance with the rules of the Common Fisheries Policy, which led to the Commission’s revoking of Ireland’s control plan earlier this year, " the SFPA statement said.

"During the first four months of the new year, the SFPA will continue to engage with the Commission and industry on developing a fair and effective permanent control plan, "it said.

Meanwhile, Minister for the Marine Charlie McConalogue has announced the appointment of Paschal Hayes as executive chair and member of the SFPA.

The Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority (SFPA) says it is continuing to work as “collaboratively” as possible with key stakeholders in its new three-year strategy.

The strategy published late this week was developed in consultation with stakeholders, the regulatory body says.

It says it reflects “the extent of the SFPA’s remit across the sea-fisheries and the sea-food production industry as well as the evolving regulatory environment in which it operates”.

The strategy also sets out plans to complete the organisational change programme that is “already underway”, it says.

“As the sea-fisheries regulator, the SFPA’s remit includes all fishing vessels operating within Ireland’s 200-mile limit, almost 2,000 Irish registered fishing vessels, wherever they operate, and all seafood produced in Ireland’s seafood-processing companies,” it states.

SFPA authority member Tim Donovan said that “while our primary functions have not altered since the organisation was established in 2007, the SFPA’s environment has changed substantially and will continue to evolve”.

“Our plan reflects this and underpins our commitment to promote compliance, safeguarding public welfare as well as the delivery of a sustainable, competitive, and innovative seafood sector,” he said.

“Ireland has a safe, innovative fishing industry that is recognised and respected worldwide, while its fish products are acknowledged globally as healthy and nutritious food,” he continued in a statement.

“Robust confidence in an effective regulatory service plays a key role in maintaining that reputation and in ensuring fair and sustainable usage of a shared marine resource for which many compete,” he said.

“ Good regulation is required to protect it and ensure fish for future generations as well as ensuring consumers worldwide can enjoy Irish seafood safely,” he continued.

Donovan referred to changes such as a “rapidly evolving regulatory environment with substantial changes to EU fisheries and seafood safety law” and “monumental changes brought about by Brexit”.

Brexit is having a significant impact, particularly in relation to catch and health certification of Irish fish exports as well as import controls that have significant implications for the industry as well as for the SFPA, he noted.

“ This strategy is a new pathway forward and outlines a new vision for the SFPA, in how we carry out our work. It represents ambition and so too commitment and a deep desire to ensure an engaged and collaborative approach to ensure the sustainability of this important sector,” Donovan said.

The Sea Fisheries Protection Authority (SFPA) says that a Spanish-registered fishing vessel was "operating within the waters of Bantry Bay and therefore within Ireland's 12-nautical mile limit" during what Irish fishermen in the South West claim was an attempted ramming incident.

The incident was filmed by the crew of the Irish trawler.

The Irish skipper can be heard on VHF radio telling the Spanish boat to 'stay away from us.'

The CEO of the Irish South and West Fish Producers, Patrick Murphy, called SFPA Chair Susan Steele and asked for immediate action.

Fishermen also called for the Navy to protect Irish fishing boats.

The CEO of the Irish South and West Fish Producers, Patrick Murphy

"The Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority are aware of a situation that arose when a Spanish registered vessel was encountered by an Irish-registered vessel operating within the waters of Bantry Bay and therefore within the IRL 12-nautical mile limit. The situation continues to be closely monitored by the National Fisheries Monitoring Centre at the Naval Base, Haulbowline," the SFPA said in a statement.

The incident happened on Friday morning, two days after fishermen staged a demonstration in Cork protesting at the dominant quotas held by non-Irish EU vessels in Irish waters.

"This was an attempt to force Irish boats off our own fishing grounds. It is intimidation. Our authorities must take action against this vessel acting extremely dangerously at sea and endangering life," the Chief Executive of the Irish South and West Fish Producers' Organisation, Patrick Murphy, said. "It is appalling. This was a threat to life at sea, so action must be taken against the vessel which tried to do the ramming. The Spanish boat should be arrested and stopped from fishing in Irish waters."

An environmental group has called on Taoiseach Micheál Martin to separate the State’s Sea Fisheries Protection Agency from control by the Department of Agriculture and the Marine.

As The Times Ireland edition reports today, the Friends of the Irish Environment (FIE) believe EU penalties imposed on the Irish fishing sector are a consequence of the SFPA's lack of independence.

The entire Irish fishing sector is now having to bear the burden of penalties arising from an EU audit of specific breaches which were not sufficiently addressed by Irish authorities, FIE says.

The 2018 EU audit had identified “severe and significant weaknesses in the Irish control system” for the EU’s Common Fisheries Policy, detailing irregularities, including the manipulation of weighing systems in some instances.

Ireland is already negotiating terms of a payback quotas, as the EU auditors found that Ireland had overfished its quota of mackerel by 28,600 tonnes; horse mackerel quota by 8,100 tonnes and blue whiting by 5,600 tonnes between 2012 and 2016.

The EU’s recent decision to withdraw Ireland’s control plan for weighing catches has caused consternation within the industry, as all seafood catches by both large and small vessels now have to be weighed at the point of landing.

Ireland had previously secured a derogation to allow weighing in factories, due to the loss of quality involved in weighing at the pier.

The FIE has published the full EU audit report on its website, and has also written to the National Bureau of Criminal Investigations and to the Criminal Assets Bureau, asking both agencies if they are aware of the audit team’s recommendations in relation to tackling fraud.

SFPA chair Dr Susan Steele,who is due to take up a post as head of the EU’s fisheries control agency in Vigo, Spain in September, said the EU decision on weighing catches at the point of landing is a “clear marker of tougher fisheries controls across the EU”.

However, the Killybegs Fishermen’s Organisation (KFO) has said it is “simply flabbergasted” that what it described as “this bewildering move which has such a direct and draconian impact on all aspects of Irish fisheries” could “be considered without any advance notice”.

In its letter to the Taoiseach, the FIE says that that the root cause of the problem is an undermining of the independence of the SFPA by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine.

Noting the department's “ development priorities”, FIE Director Tony Lowes said the “necessary and appropriate checks and balances incumbent on the department in the exercise of its functions are impossible”.

“The compounding procedures brought against Ireland by the EU are because the SFPA, like the Marine Institute, is administered by the part of the Department of Agriculture also responsible for the promotion of the seafood industry,” he said.

He has urged the Taoiseach to transfer administration and financing of the SFPA to “one of the many non-marine divisions”.

The Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine said it was "not accurate" to suggest it undermined the SFPA's independence.

It said the SFPA's independence is laid down in legislation that is "fully respected", and it said it had also increased the SFPA's budget with further recruitment planned for this year.

Read The Times here

An Irish marine biologist has been appointed head of the EU’s monitoring body for the Common Fisheries Policy.

Dr Susan Steele, who grew up on West Cork’s Beara peninsula, has been appointed executive director of the European Fisheries Control Agency (EFCA).

She is currently chair and chief executive of the State’s Sea Fisheries Protection Agency (SFPA).

The EFCA’s primary role is to organise coordination and cooperation between national control and inspection activities, ensuring the rules of the EU’s Common Fisheries Policy are “respected and applied effectively”.

Based in Vigo, Spain, it cooperates with the European Border and Coast Guard Agency and the European Maritime Safety Agency to support national authorities.

The EFCA confirmed Dr Steele’s appointment on Thursday (Apr 22), stating that she has a “solid background in fisheries management and control!.

Dr Steele had been head of the SPFA since 2013, and was previously head of the innovation at the national Seafood Development Centre from 2009.

She also worked with Bord Iascaigh Mhara (BIM) as head of aquaculture and business from 2006 to 2009.

She holds a PhD from the National University of Ireland, an MBA, a Masters in Education (M.Ed) and a bachelor degree in marine biology.

She is expected to take up her new European post on September 1st, 2021.

Ireland’s SFPA was recently directed by the EU to withdraw its control plan for weighing fish landed by Irish vessels, following an EU audit in 2018 conducted in Killybegs, Co Donegal.

Last year, the EFCA recorded 38,452 inspections at sea and ashore, leading to 1787 suspected infringements in EU member states.