Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent steps her Department has taken to help support fishing communities in (a) Strangford constituency and (b) Northern Ireland.

Since leaving the EU, the UK Government continues to provide £3.1 million annually through the Maritime and Fisheries Fund (NI) to support Northern Ireland fishing stakeholders for investments tailored to the specific needs of the sector and its dependent communities.

In addition, the £100 million UK Seafood Fund is offering support to fishing communities across the UK including Strangford and Northern Ireland by reforming and modernising infrastructure and delivering science and innovation to inform fisheries management. So far, we have awarded £350,000 in Northern Ireland to projects involving the Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute who are working in partnership with industry to provide valuable research.

The UK Seafood Fund is also encouraging new entrants to industry whilst upskilling the existing workforce and a new £2 million funding round is now available to the small-scale coastal fleet in Northern Ireland for the replacement of new engines that will provide much needed support for the catching sector.

The Department has also worked in UK-EU consultations to secure a good outcome on the management of stocks of interest to Northern Irish fishers, including new access arrangements to fish albacore tuna in EU waters, and increased fishing opportunities for Nephrops in 2023.