5.10 Highlights

5.10 Highlights

The negotiations between the EU and United Kingdom on 2023 fishing opportunities concluded in late 2022 before the 20 December deadline set out in the EU-UK Trade & Cooperation Agreement. This allowed total allowable catches (TAC’s) and quotas to be set for the full year, providing certainty and stability for our fleet.

In 2022, a TAC was set for the 2023 spurdog fishery for the first time in over 10 years allowing for the re-opening of this fishery. The spurdog fishery is a new fishing opportunity with a fish quota of 1,871 tonnes set for Irish fishers in 2023.

Figure from page 186

In 2022, the scientific advice from International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) was that the herring in 6A South could be managed again as a commercial stock in 2023 with a fish quota of 1,720 tonnes set for Irish fishers. It had been managed as a scientific fishery from 2016 to 2022.

Also in 2022, the Sea-fisheries (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, to give effect to the Masters’ Points System, was signed into law by the President on 15 March 2022 - in line with the Programme for Government commitment to “Implement a fair EU Points system, in order to protect fish stocks and ensure the release of suspended EU funding”. The introduction of the points systems for masters (along with the previously introduced separate point system for sea fishing boat licence holders) will play a vital role in delivering on the CFP objective of ensuring proportionate, effective and dissuasive penalties for serious infringements, and contribute to a level-playing field in fisheries control across Member States.