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Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue, today presented the final report of the Common Fisheries Policy Review Group to the Cabinet.
Under the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP), the European Commission must report to the European Parliament and Council on the functioning of the CFP by the end of 2022. In February 2022, Minister McConalogue established a national Common Fisheries Policy Review Group of relevant stakeholders to examine the issues that arise for Ireland in the context of the Commission’s Review, to advise him on priorities for the negotiations, and to identify strategies most likely to influence the outcome of the review.
The Review Group was chaired by Mr. John Malone, former Secretary General of the Department of Agriculture, and assisted by a steering committee comprising Mr. Micheál Ó Cinnéide, former Director of the MI and EPA and Mr. Donal Maguire, former Director in BIM. The Group involved representatives of Producer Organisations, the National Inshore Fisheries Forum, the aquaculture industry, co-ops, the seafood processing industry and representatives of environmental NGOs.
In the report, stakeholders have set out a number of recommendations on aspects of the CFP which need to be addressed in order to adapt to the changes of recent years and ensure a sustainable future for the sector. These include the need for legislative change as part of the CFP review in order to address the impacts of Brexit and the EU-UK Trade and Co-operation Agreement, as well as socio-economic imbalances within EU fisheries. The report also highlights the need to support environmental sustainability and develop the Aquaculture sector.
Minister McConalogue said:
“The seafood sector has faced unprecedented challenges over the last number of years. I have consistently made clear the Irish Government’s assessment that the substantial changes in fisheries policy resulting from the adoption of the EU-UK Trade and Co-operation Agreement require that, internally within the EU, a comprehensive review of the CFP be carried out that would support changes to deliver a fair and equitable policy. The report of the Review Group demonstrates clearly that there is a need for legislative changes in the current policy to address the disproportionate impacts of the TCA and in the context of the new environmental challenges we are all facing.”
Minister McConalogue has also forwarded a copy of the Final Report of the CFP Review Group to the EU Fisheries Commissioner, Virginijus Sinkevičius, who is responsible for the CFP review for consideration of how the report’s findings and recommendations can be taken forward to support a fair and balanced Common Fisheries Policy for Irish fishers for the next decade.
Minister McConalogue concluded by saying:
“I would like to thank the members of the Common Fisheries Policy Review Group for the time and effort they have invested in this process. It is a testament to their ongoing commitment to Ireland’s seafood sector and our coastal and rural communities.”
The Final Report of the Common Fisheries Policy Review Group is available on the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine website: gov.ie - Final Report of the Common Fisheries Policy Review Group (www.gov.ie)