State salmon insurance questioned

Minister Coveney's Seafood Development Plan 2014-2020 proposes to underwrite operations that suffer losses of up to 30% of their annual turnover from “natural disasters”, “adverse climatic events”, and “diseases in aquaculture”.

FIE cited an “adverse climatic event” in Bantry Bay last year where 220,000 salmon were lost. It questioned the Plan’s rationale, which cited the limited ability of business to “shop around” and “the consequent high price of insurance compared to the level of cover given”.

FIE calls the proposed insurance scheme “incomprehensible in environmental terms and foolish in economic terms”. The group alleges that the proposal will in fact undermine the green theme of the Specific Objectives of EU Measures which target “Promotion of aquaculture having a high level of environmental protection”.

Clare Daly, TD, has tabled written parliamentary questions asking the Minister to provide the extent of actuary advice available to him which provided the basis of the Minister’s proposal to insure the installations and whether he is proposing below cost insurance, which would constitute state aid.