The Irish inshore fishing sector has been pushed to the brink by a combinations of regulatory, market and seasonal factors, the Oireachtas fisheries committee has been told.
The representative body for inshore fishermen, the National Inshore Fisheries Association (NIFA), appeared before the committee on Tuesday to discuss a proposal for the introduction of a basic income payment for fishermen as a “stabiliser to stop collapse” of the sector.
NIFA submitted a proposal for the creation of income stabilisation and climate compensation scheme for inshore fishing communities in a similar form to what is available for farmers under the basic farm payment scheme. That scheme saw an average payment of €21,388 across all farm types, with the fisherman seeking a similar payment allocated on a per-boat basis.
Michael Desmond, the chairman of NIFA, said that the possible loss of inshore fishing jobs would cause a “structural economic loss” for coastal towns.
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“For the first time in living memory, the problem facing the inshore sector is not a bad season, it is not a bad market, it is not a single regulation. It is the combination of everything at once — and it has pushed the sector to the brink," he said.
Desmond told the committee that fishermen have seen “continuous quota losses from annual negotiations” in combination with “major increases” in operating costs such as fuel, bait, insurance and maintenance. These challenges were added to by “severe price volatility and most significantly: a drastic reduction in safe fishing days due to weather”.
NIFA warned that older fishermen are exiting the sector early with “no replacement generation” amid challenges for young people to secure capital.
Fine Gael Senator Manus Boyle said crewing is an issue for the sector, as young people “don’t want to go out” as part of the fleet. Pointing to inflation in the sector, Boyle echoed testimony from fishermen that bait prices had more than doubled in the past year and said coast communities are “suffering”.
Sinn Féin TD Conor McGuinness, chairman of the committee, welcomed the proposal, noting it also raised ideas of reopening “salmon, seabass and trout fisheries for small vessels only” and larger quotas for inshore vessels.
NIFA estimate there are fewer than 1,500 in-shore fishing boats in the country, with even fewer actively operating.
The representative body noted it is “not asking the State to make fishermen wealthy”, instead it is asking for a measure to stabilise the sector, keep the fleet fishing, and retain the domestic food production sector.
“We are asking the State to recognise that a climate-exposed primary food sector cannot operate with zero income stability while every comparable sector has support mechanisms.”
