87% of fishers in Ireland are small-scale fishers.

Omissions

• No Ireland-specific source confirming '87% of fishers are small-scale' was found in the searches performed.
• The closest figure located (87%) refers to the EU-25 fleet share of vessels under 15 metres in the report 'Small-scale coastal fisheries in Europe' (European Commission study), not to Ireland or to fishers as individuals.
• The EC annual fleet capacity report for Ireland (2023) and the Irish Fishing Fleet Survey 2023 (1,993 registered vessels, ~1,393 active) were identified as potentially relevant, but their content on the small-scale share could not be extracted from the search results.
• The MEP (Luke Ming Flanagan, The Left) frequently advocates for small-scale fishers; the claim may be based on a specific national or sectoral statistic not retrievable with the queries used.

Sources

• PrimaryEuropean Commission - Annual Report on the Irish Fishing Fleet for 2023This report gives a description of the Irish fishing fleet in relation to fisheries developments during 2023, the impact on fishing capacity of fishing vessels and the balance between fleet capacity and available fishing opportunities. (Fleet composition by length class could not be extracted from the search results.)
• AcademicResearchGate - Small-scale coastal fisheries in Europe. Final report (European Commission study)SSCF are strongly represented in all EU Member States (81% and 87% of the EU 25 whole fleet is composed of vessels less than 12 and 15 meters respectively).
• SecondaryThe Skipper - Irish Fishing Fleet Survey 2023 ReportIreland's fishing fleet structure remained relatively stable in 2023, with 1,993 registered vessels excluding those in the aquaculture segment. Of these, an estimated 1,393 vessels were active, representing a 6% increase from 2022.