362. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if draft net licence holders are eligible under any of the recently announced fisheries grant schemes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38772/24]

The responsibility for the licencing of commercial draft net fishing comes under the remit of Inland Fisheries Ireland. As such any queries regarding grant aid available to draft net licence holders should be addressed to Inland Fisheries Ireland, which is under the aegis of my colleague at the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications, Minister Eamon Ryan TD.

My Department is the Managing Authority for the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund (EMFAF) 2021-2027. Bord Iascaigh Mhara (BIM) administers schemes funded under EMFAF which provide grant aid to the fisheries and aquaculture sectors.

Draft net licence holders who are also active in the commercial sea-fishing, aquaculture or seafood processing sectors may be entitled to grant aid under the schemes administered by BIM. Details of all schemes are available on BIMs website, www.bim.ie Potential applicants can submit queries to BIM by calling +353 1 2144100 or emailing info@bim.ie, or by contacting one of BIM Regional Development Officers, whose contact details are available on the the website.