Debate contribution: Fisheries, Aquaculture and Water Environment Bill: Second Stage

Debate contribution by Ms Aoife Finnegan on 30 June 2026.

MLA: Ms Aoife Finnegan
Party at the time: Sinn Féin
Date: 30 June 2026
Type: Debate contribution
Business: Executive Committee Business
Heading: Fisheries, Aquaculture and Water Environment Bill: Second Stage
Assembly identifier: Official Report component 5653335

Text

I welcome the opportunity to speak on Second Stage of the Fisheries, Aquaculture and Water Environment Bill. Sinn Féin recognises the need to modernise the legislation governing our fisheries and water environment. Much of the current framework is decades old and does not reflect the environmental challenges that we face today or the need to protect biodiversity while supporting our fisheries and aquaculture sectors. We support the Bill's broad principles. Protecting our waterways is not only an environmental priority; it is vital to our rural communities, our economy and our tourism sector and to future generations here. However, we believe that a number of issues will require careful scrutiny as the Bill progresses through its Committee Stage. I will address the economic impact assessments first. Approximately half of respondents to the Department's consultation on the policy proposals expressed the view that the impact assessments accompanying the consultation did not adequately consider the potential impacts of the proposals. That is a significant concern and should not be overlooked. I look forward to hearing, as the Bill progresses, how the Department intends to address those concerns. When stakeholders raise legitimate issues through a consultation, Departments should be prepared to undertake further analysis, where necessary: that strengthens legislation and builds confidence in the process. Sinn Féin will explore that issue further during the Committee's scrutiny of the Bill. The Bill strengthens enforcement powers and increases penalties for a range of offences. Those who deliberately pollute our waterways should be held accountable, but enforcement alone will not resolve the underlying causes of poor water quality. If we are serious about restoring our rivers, lakes and waterways, we must continue to invest in waste water infrastructure. Simply moving money from one public body to another through fines will not, on its own, deliver cleaner waterways: prevention must remain our priority. I welcome the commitment from the Minister for Infrastructure, Liz Kimmins, to work collaboratively with Minister Muir on that issue. The Infrastructure Minister has already allocated more than £500 million to NI Water, which represents almost 40% of the Department for Infrastructure's non-ring-fenced budget. That demonstrates a significant commitment to upgrading waste water infrastructure. Protecting water quality requires that Departments work together to combine strong environmental regulation with the infrastructure investment that is needed to prevent pollution before it occurs. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, I will touch on cross-border cooperation. The policy memorandum refers to mechanisms to address east-west divergence. That is welcome, but, as the Bill progresses, we will want to see what proactive action DAERA intends to take to ensure that there is North/South alignment. We have said in the Chamber, time and again, that our waterways do not recognise borders. River catchments and stocks are shared, and significant areas are regulated by the Loughs Agency. We look forward to hearing more about the engagement that has taken place, and that will continue to take place, with counterparts in the South and with the Loughs Agency to ensure that the legislation supports a coordinated approach to protecting our shared aquatic environment. Sinn Féin supports the modernisation of fisheries legislation but wants to ensure that it is underpinned by robust scrutiny, meaningful stakeholder engagement, continued investment in waste water infrastructure and effective cooperation across the island. If we achieve that balance, we can deliver legislation that protects our environment, while supporting our fishing communities and future generations.

564 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

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