In the week the Marine Management Organisation (MMO) opened the €243m European Maritime Fisheries Fund (EMFF) in England. John Gargett, Communications Manager at the MMO, tells us a little about the scheme.
18 January 2016 was a very important day in the MMO - one we have all been working towards for some time to ensure all of the necessary parts were all in place to open the EMFF scheme in England.
The launch
The launch of the fund is great news for fishermen and the fishing industry as it will provide funding for things like supporting the competitiveness of the fishing sector and helps fishermen receive funding to adapt to the reformed Common Fisheries Policy (CFP).
The scheme
The scheme has firstly opened for projects which focus on the reform of the CFP, improving health and safety on vessels, enhancing the quality or value of catch, investing in port and harbour infrastructure such as ports/auction halls/shelters, helping the processing of seafood and aquaculture products or general investments in aquaculture. As such there is a vast range of opportunities for applications and €33m is being made available straight away.
How to apply
You can submit an application via our website. We want our scheme to be as easy to use as possible so we listened to feedback from stakeholders on the European Fisheries Fund scheme (the predecessor to EMFF) and used this insight to make EMFF straightforward for people to apply for funds. Things like a new online application system which provides people with real time assistance when filling in the application forms is just one of these developments.
Need more help?
In addition our teams are fully trained and ready to take your calls and provide assistance. You can ring our EMFF helpline 0208 026 5539 or email us at emff.queries@marinemanagement.org.uk. Visit our web pages for more information.