Ms Laura Behan:

I thank the Chair. Consideration by the committee today of the role of alternative fuels and technologies in decarbonising transport is timely. Our two Departments, namely, Communications, Climate Action and Environment and Transport, Tourism and Sport, work together on this agenda and a number of significant developments are being brought to fruition. My colleague, Mr. Confrey, and I co-chair the task force on low emission vehicles, LEVs, which is examining a range of measures and options to accelerate the deployment of LEVs here. A Programme for a Partnership Government committed to establishing the task force to enable Ireland to become leader in the uptake of LEVs. Transport and energy collaboration on this alternative fuels agenda has also underpinned both the development of the national policy framework on alternative fuels infrastructure and the development of transport measures for inclusion in the forthcoming national mitigation plan, which is the whole-of-Government decarbonisation roadmap.

Reflecting our respective roles, we propose to share the opening statement. I will outline the role of alternative fuels and technologies in transport emissions abatement, then will discuss briefly the national mitigation plan and finally will speak on the development of the national policy framework on alternative fuels infrastructure. From the energy perspective, Mr. Confrey will then outline the work of the LEV task force, the role of electric vehicles and biofuels in meeting renewable energy targets and the proposed changes envisaged in the new EU clean energy package.

There is no doubt about the scale of the challenge we face to achieve our national policy ambition of transition to a climate resilient low-carbon society by 2050. That is especially challenging for the transport sector, not only in Ireland but throughout the developed world. Our welcome return to economic growth brings with it increasing travel demand. Ireland is back on the move, presenting the transport sector with the challenge of reducing greenhouse gas emissions in an expanding sector without impeding social progress or economic recovery. Transport is not an end in itself; it is a means for access to jobs, markets, education, health services, cultural interaction and a range of other services and amenities that contribute to healthy and fulfilling lives.

Decarbonising by 2050 will require a transformation in how we travel, how we do business and, in particular, the types of fuel and technologies we employ. A range of complementary measures promoting lower carbon choices will also be key, such as more better-quality lower carbon public transport, more active travel and reducing the need to travel and journey distances.

The national climate change mitigation plan will set out both the challenges to meeting emissions reduction targets and a clear pathway towards Ireland's objective of transition to a low-carbon economy. The Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment and his Department have the lead role within Government in preparing the plan. In that, they work closely with the various key Departments including Agriculture, Food and the Marine, ourselves in Transport, Tourism and Sport, Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform and Housing, Planning and Local Government. The responsibility for emissions reduction is a collective one and Ireland's emission reduction targets are national and not sectoral in nature. Transport will of course have to play its part. The measures we will set out will be wide-ranging and will focus primarily on modal shift particularly to public transport in urban areas, a movement to alternatively fuelled vehicles and targeted behavioural change.

Major changes to our conventional fuel choices will be needed to effect this substantial reduction in overall transport emissions. Greater use of alternative fuels and technologies offers the most feasible and cost-effective solution to tackling this greenhouse gas challenge, as well as moving us towards meeting our renewable energy targets. In recognition of this and in support of EU-wide action to encourage the deployment of alternative fuels, Ireland’s national policy framework for alternative fuels infrastructure for transport was recently published by the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport. It represents our first step in communicating the longer term national vision, a cornerstone of which is our ambition that, by 2030, all new cars and vans sold in Ireland will be zero emissions capable. The framework is intended to ensure access to refuelling or recharging infrastructure will not act as a barrier to the take-up of alternatively fuelled vehicles. It will achieve this by ensuring appropriate provision of refuelling infrastructure and setting common technical standards for EU-wide interoperability. In so doing it will provide a supportive, enabling environment for suppliers and consumers and increase confidence and reassurance in our national commitment to the emerging alternative fuels market.

I will hand over to my colleague from the Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment.