Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to meet the committee to discuss the 2018 Revised Estimate for my Department. I am joined by my colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy Seán Kyne, who has responsibility for natural resources and digital services development. I am also joined by my officials, Mr. Brian Carroll, assistant secretary with responsibility for climate action and environment; Mr. Ciarán Ó hÓbáin, assistant secretary with responsibility for the communications division; Ms Rebecca Minch, principal officer, energy efficiency and affordability division; Mr. Denis Maher, principal officer, inland fisheries division; and Jim Whelan, assistant principal officer, finance unit.

The total provision for my Department in 2018 is €587 million which comprises €215 million for capital investment, inclusive of a capital carryover from last year of €6 million, and €372 million for current spending, of which €222 million represents a pass-through of television licence receipts. During 2018 my Department will progress projects in a number of areas of strategic national importance, encompassing climate action, energy efficiency, communications, broadcasting, the environment, waste management, natural resources and inland fisheries. A number of the strategic investment priorities identified in the national development plan are directly relevant to my Department and its agencies.

I will highlight some key projects and policy objectives to be progressed this year. Delivering a connected economy and society is a key priority for my Department. Commercial investment continues to improve and expand the breadth of broadband and mobile telecoms services available in the State. Complementing this commercial investment, the State is committed to investing through national broadband plan intervention in the delivery of a future-proofed network to support high quality affordable broadband services in those areas where a commercial investment has not been demonstrated. Fast, secure, high capacity digital connectivity will underpin balanced regional development, allow new businesses and services to emerge and increase Ireland’s competitiveness and attractiveness as a place in which to live and do business. Under the national digital strategy, there will be continued support for digital adoption measures to enable small businesses and citizens to realise the full social and economic potential of the digital world. Facilitating a secure and safer Internet environment for citizens, businesses and critical infrastructure providers is essential. The National Cyber Security Centre which plays a key role in securing Government and critical national infrastructure and data will be strengthened.

Climate mitigation and adaptation are cross-cutting priorities for the Government. My Department will continue to progress the climate action agenda, in line with the whole-of-government national mitigation plan. This year the focus will be maintained on achieving targets in the areas of renewable energy and energy efficiency to combat climate change and contribute towards the achievement of Ireland’s 2020 targets. The development of renewable energy sources across the electricity, heat and transport sectors will be critical in Ireland’s transition to a low-carbon economy. Increased investment in energy efficiency upgrades in the residential, commercial and public sectors is a central plank of Ireland's action on climate change and will deliver significant energy savings. Decarbonising the built environment is the most effective way to tackle climate change. Energy efficiency measures will also realise benefits for air quality, health, social inclusion and business competitiveness, all of which will make a real and positive impact on people’s lives. The roll-out of the support scheme for renewable heat aims to support the replacement of fossil fuel heating systems with renewable energy technologies. The continued incentivisation of the uptake of electric vehicles will further support the transition to a low-carbon economy.

The sustainable management of waste and improved resource efficiency are critical.

In the environmental area, the Environmental Protection Agency will continue to deliver on its research commitments and meet its expanded role regarding ambient air quality, noise and non-ionising radiation monitoring, as well as a significant climate action agenda. Continued investment in INFOMAR and TELLUS geo-environmental mapping projects will provide reliable geoscience support, underpinning the sustainable development of Ireland's natural resources. I am happy to discuss the Estimate with the members.

The focus of programme A is to support economic growth, jobs, competitiveness and social inclusion through a range of policies and regulation designed to facilitate a more digitally connected economy and society. It provides for investment in next-generation broadband networks, promotion of the use of digital technologies by citizens and businesses and support for digital entrepreneurship. The Estimate for programme A includes funding of €15 million to finalise the tender process for the State-led intervention to bring high-speed connectivity to all parts of Ireland where there is no existing or planned commercial network.

The programme also supports digital adoption measures such as the trading online voucher scheme, the school digital champion programme and the digital skills for citizens training scheme. A sum of €3 million will be made available this year for the trading online voucher scheme to support a further 1,500 small businesses to trade online. By the end of 2017, over 4,100 small businesses had successfully applied for trading online vouchers and over 10,600 businesses in total had benefited through participation in training sessions delivered by the local enterprise offices under the scheme since it began in 2014. Under the digital skills for citizens scheme, community and voluntary organisations will receive funding of €2.2 million to deliver ten hours of free digital skills training to 25,000 people who have never used the Internet.

Programme A also supports growth and innovation in digital entrepreneurship through the Digital Hub Development Agency and the National Digital Research Centre. The 2018 Estimate includes €1.8 million for Eircode postcodes and €2 million in operational funding for the National Cyber Security Centre for the protection of critical infrastructure and Government networks.