Sea Fisheries Act, 1952

• Jurisdiction: Ireland
• Citation: IR No. 7/1952
• Year: 1952

Number 7 of 1952.
SEA FISHERIES ACT, 1952.
ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS
PART I.
Preliminary and General.
Section 1. Short title. 2. Definitions. 3. Commencement. 4. Laying of Regulations before Houses of Oireachtas. 5. Laying of reports and accounts of Board before Houses of Oireachtas. 6. Prosecution of offences. 7. Expenses.
PART II.
Regulation of Sea-Fishing.
8. Regulations. 9. Licensing of vessels for sea-fishing. 10. Restrictions on grant of licence. 11. Revocation of licence. 12. Surrender of revoked and out-of-date licences. 13. Offences.
PART III.
An Bord Iascaigh Mhara.
Establishment and Functions.
14. Establishment. 15. Functions generally.
Financial Provisions.
16. Annual estimate of Board's requirements. 17. Grants. 18. Advances to the Board out of the Central Fund. 19. Provision of money for advances to the Board out of the Central Fund. 20. Payment of interest on repayable advances. 21. Repayment of repayable advances. 22. Power of the Board to borrow temporarily.
PART IV.
An Comhlachas Iascaigh Mhara.
23. Establishment. 24. Functions.
PART V.
Dissolution of Irish Sea Fisheries Association, Limited.
25. Dissolution of the Irish Sea Fisheries Association, Limited. 26. Transfer of property of the dissolved body to the Board. 27. Transfer of liabilities of the dissolved body. 28. Preservation of continuing contracts of the dissolved body. 29. Continuance of pending legal proceedings. 30. Exemption from stamp duty. 31. Payment in respect of shares in dissolved body.
PART VI.
Licences to Sell Fresh Fish.
32. District to which this Part of this Act applies. 33. Fish sales licences. 34. Duration of licences. 35. Fees on licences. 36. Revocation of licences. 37. Prohibition of sale of fresh fish without licence. 38. Register of licences. 39. Evidence of non-holding of licence. 40. Disposal of fees. 41. Repeal of Act of 1931.
FIRST SCHEDULE.
An Bord Iascaigh Mhara.
SECOND SCHEDULE.
An Comhlachas Iascaigh Mhara.
Acts Referred to Finance (No. 2) Act, 1947 No. 33 of 1947 Finance Act, 1949 No. 13 of 1949 Sea Fisheries Act, 1931 No. 4 of 1931 Local Authorities (Officers and Employees) Act, 1926 No. 39 of 1926
Number 7 of 1952.
SEA FISHERIES ACT, 1952.
AN ACT TO PROVIDE FOR THE IMPROVEMENT AND REGULATION OF THE SEA-FISHING INDUSTRY AND FOR MATTERS (INCLUDING THE CHARGING OF FEES ON CERTAIN LICENCES) CONNECTED WITH THE MATTERS AFORESAID. [22nd April, 1952.]
BE IT ENACTED BY THE OIREACHTAS AS FOLLOWS:—
PART I. Preliminary and General.
	Short title.	1.—This Act may be cited as the Sea Fisheries Act, 1952.
	Definitions.	2.—In this Act—
	“the Association” means the body established by section 23;
	“the Board” means the body established by section 14;
	“the distributive fish trade” includes the wholesale fish trade, the retail fish trade and the business of curing, smoking, canning or otherwise processing fish for sale;
	“fresh fish” means fish which has not been salted, smoked, cured or otherwise artificially preserved, but includes fish which has been preserved solely by refrigeration;
	“licence” means a licence under section 9;
	“master”, in relation to a sea-fishing boat, means the master, skipper or other person for the time being in charge of the boat;
	“the Minister” means the Minister for Agriculture;
	“prescribed” means prescribed by regulations made by the Minister;
	“sea-fish” means fish of any kind found in the sea and whether fresh or in other condition and includes crustaceans and molluscs found in the sea;
	“sea-fishing” means fishing for or taking sea-fish in tidal waters;
	“sea-fishing boat” means any ship, boat or other vessel of whatsoever kind used for sea-fishing, and includes any ship, boat or other vessel used for the treatment of fish or wholly or mainly for the transport of fish;
	“seafisherman” means an individual who engages in sea-fishing and does not directly engage in either the wholesale or retail sale of fresh fish;
	“the wholesale fish trade” includes the business of auctioning fish.
	Commencement.	3.—This Act shall come into operation on such day or days as may be fixed therefor by order or orders of the Minister either generally or with reference to any particular purpose or provision and different days may be so fixed for different purposes and different provisions of this Act.
	Laying of Regulations before Houses of Oireachtas.	4.—Every regulation made by the Minister under this Act shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas as soon as may be after it is made, and if a resolution annulling the regulation is passed by either House within the next twenty-one days on which that House has sat after the regulation is laid before it, the regulation shall be annulled accordingly but without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under the regulation.
	Laying of reports and accounts of Board before Houses of Oireachtas.	5.—The Minister shall lay before each House of the Oireachtas a copy of every report made to him by the Board under this Act, together with a copy of the last capital account, revenue account, profit and loss account, and balance sheet of the Board and a copy of the auditors' report on such accounts and balance sheet and shall with every such report by the Board lay before each House of the Oireachtas copies of such information, returns and accounts furnished to him under this Act as may be necessary for the proper understanding of such report.
	Prosecution of offences.	6.—(1) Proceedings for an offence under this Act shall not be instituted save by or with the consent of the Minister.
	(2) Every offence under this Act may be prosecuted by or at the suit of the Minister as prosecutor.
	Expenses.	7.—All expenses of carrying this Act into execution shall, to such extent as may be sanctioned by the Minister for Finance, be paid out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas.
PART II. Regulation of Sea-Fishing.
	Regulations.	8.—(1) The Minister may make such regulations for the landing and sale of sea-fish and for the storage, handling, transport, processing and treating of sea-fish as appear to him to be necessary or desirable.
	(2) Before making regulations the Minister shall consult the Board and, unless in his opinion it is impracticable to do so, the Association or its Committee.
	Licensing of vessels for sea-fishing.	9.—(1) No vessel exceeding thirty-five feet over all in length shall be used for sea-fishing except under and in accordance with a licence under this section.
	(2) (a) A licence for a vessel may be granted by the Minister on application made by or on behalf of the owner, charterer or hirer of the vessel.
	(b) The application shall be in the prescribed form and contain such particulars as the Minister may require.
	(3) (a) A licence shall not be granted unless the vessel is registered in the State under the Merchant Shipping Acts, 1894 to 1947, and is owned by an Irish citizen or a company incorporated under the Companies Acts, 1908 to 1924, the whole of the share capital of which is held by Irish citizens.
	(b) This prohibition shall not apply in relation to the Board or to a vessel which on the 1st day of February, 1952, is registered in the State under the Merchant Shipping Acts, 1894 to 1947, so long as it continues to be so registered.
	(4) A licence may be granted without limit as to time or for a specified period.
	(5) A licence may be granted subject to such conditions as the Minister thinks fit, including restrictions on sea-fishing either generally or in regard to methods of sea-fishing in particular places and as to disposal of the catches and the Minister may from time to time vary any condition or impose new conditions.
	(6) Where—
	(a) a vessel is licensed under this Act, and
	(b) any person being owner, charterer or hirer of the vessel, or if such person is a body corporate, any member thereof or the master of the vessel is directly engaged in either the wholesale or retail sale of fresh fish,
	the catches of the vessel shall be delivered for sale to the Board or disposed of according to the directions of the Board.
	(7) A licence for a vessel shall be valid only if and so long as no person, other than a person named in the licence or his legal personal representative, is the owner, charterer or hirer of the vessel.
	(8) A licence shall be carried on board the vessel to which it relates and the owner, charterer, hirer or master shall, on demand, produce the licence for inspection by any sea fisheries protection officer under the Sea Fisheries Protection Act, 1933 , as amended by section 34 of the Fisheries (Statute Law Revision) Act, 1949 .
	Restrictions on grant of licence.	10.—Subject to section 9 the Minister shall grant a licence to an applicant unless—
	(a) a former licence granted to him has been revoked, or
	(b) the applicant or any other person who, if the licence were granted, would be concerned in the management of the vessel, whether as owner, charterer, hirer or master, was concerned in the management of a vessel in any such capacity at a time when an offence was committed by reason of which a licence for that vessel was revoked.
	Revocation of licence.	11.—(1) Where a person is convicted for contravention of a condition of a licence the Minister may, within three months after such conviction, revoke the licence if...