Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask Her Majesty's Government how much of the promised £100 million of funding for the UK Seafood Fund they have allocated.

Thus far, £24 million of the £100 million UK Seafood Fund has been allocated to the Science and Innovation pillar, which includes the Fisheries Industry Science Partnerships (FISP) scheme and the Seafood Innovation Fund (SIF). The Infrastructure and Skills and Training pillars will be announced in due course.

FISP will support the seafood industry to work jointly with scientists to gather new data to manage the UK’s fish stocks more sustainably, gather new data on gear selectivity and build a better understanding of the ecosystem benefits and impacts of Aquaculture.

SIF will fund projects that develop innovative ideas and technologies, such as new biodegradable packaging for chilled fish and seafood to reduce single-use plastics.

The UK Seafood Fund has been set up specifically to support the UK seafood industry. The Infrastructure pillar will prioritise applications from coastal communities and the most deprived areas across the four nations while Skills and Training will invest directly in the workforce which make up the communities built around the industry.