Ireland’s leading maritime newspaper covering the Coastal, Fishing and Maritime Communities
MARINE TIMES NEWS October 1st:
Minister Dooley Signs Six-Mile Legal Restriction
The Minister of State with special responsibility for Fisheries, Timmy Dooley, signed Policy Directive 1 of 2025 on the last day of September, giving legal effect to restrictions on trawling by larger vessels inside the six nautical mile zone.
These restrictions were announced by him and Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Martin Heydon, on July 22.
Minister Dooley said in a statement that he was “delighted to finally sign this Policy Directive.”
“This has been a matter of significant public interest, and I would like to sincerely thank all stakeholders to the public consultation for their immense engagement with this process. It marks the culmination of years of work in reviewing access to our inshore waters.”
From 1 October 2026, trawling the operating of trawl or seine nets by fishing vessels over 18 metres in length overall inside the six nautical mile zone and the baselines has been prohibited. A catch limit of 2,000 tonnes of sprat will be permitted for vessels over 18 metres length overall inside the six nautical mile zone and inside baselines until the end of September next year. As the introduction of these new measures may affect vessels that are owned and operated in Northern Ireland, the start date for the application of this catch limit has been amended to 11 October to allow a sufficient notification period for the United Kingdom in accordance with Article 496(3) of the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement.
A new Statutory Instrument has also been signed by Minister Dooley to provide for the monitoring of the sprat fishery for sea-fishing boats that are over 18 metres in length overall engaging in trawling activity within the six nautical mile zone and the baselines in the period October 11 2025 to September 30 2026. This Statutory Instrument provides that the Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority will notify the Minister when 2,000 tonnes of sprat has been taken by these vessels from this zone in this period.
Minister Dooley maintained, in his statement after the policy signing, that it “will help to re-establish links between local fish resources, local fleets and local economies. An inshore fleet with increased access to waters closer to the shore could mean a greater distribution of landings of all available fish stocks across our coastal regions. This could have positive knock-on effects for local businesses, including those in the hospitality and tourist sectors.”
Minister Heydon said he was “confident that restricting access to the six nautical mile zone to smaller vessels was the right decision and to deliver on the promise made by this Government to support our crucial inshore fishing sector.”
• A copy of Policy Directive 1 of 2025, the Sea-Fisheries (Sprat Fishing) Regulations 2025, and all documents associated with the public consultation on the matter are available at the following link: https://www.gov.ie/en/department-of-agriculture-food-and-the-marine/consultations/public-consultation-on-trawling-activity-inside-the-six-nautical-mile-zone-and-the-baselines/
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