Dr. Brian Motherway:

In the context of climate as presenting a governance challenge, we have the side that is involved in understanding the challenges globally, such as emissions limits the system can take, what we need to contribute and what must change in Ireland in terms of adaptation. Then, separate from this, we have the challenge of actually reducing emissions. Therefore, on the one hand, the global challenges fall to the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government, while the challenge of reducing emissions falls to the Departments with responsibility for energy, transport and agricultural matters. Each of these Departments and its relevant agencies are the experts in how to do the job on the ground. One cannot centralise all of this as the Department with responsibility for energy matters does not know much about cows, while the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine does not know much about attic insulation. We must leave sectoral delivery to the sectoral experts and then we need some platform for co-ordinating and prioritising action. It does not matter much where this co-ordination is housed, as long as it is done right and we can get over some of the competitiveness issues between Departments for resources or between silos where people do not tell each other what they are doing. If we get the principles right, the exact geographical location is less important.

If we look at other countries, we are unusual in our energy Department being where it is. In most countries it is either part of an enterprise or an environment ministry and there are advantages and disadvantages attached to both. We are unusual in that it is separate from these. This is an advantage in some ways because it allows us to concentrate on energy matters, but compared to other countries it is a small Department which is stretched in terms of resources, manpower and budget and this limits what it can do. The mission for us, regardless of the specifics, is to find ways to ensure the resources go to priorities in terms of delivery.

There must be a certain amount of co-ordination. The NESC described this quite well in terms of the international-facing side and our climate obligations and accounting for our targets. Then we have a more inward-facing side, with bodies such as ours which, at some level, do not take much heed of what is going on in the UNFCCC. We just ask what the targets are and then try to save energy and hence emissions. These various aspects need to remain within the sectors in which there is the expertise available.

I hope that answers the Deputy's question.