Professor Brian Ó Gallachóir:

One of the challenges we identified in the context of budget discussions around climate action was that sometimes the discourse is a narrow one on carbon taxes. As I mentioned, the biofuel obligation delivered more than anything else as a single measure. An obligation around renewable gas could be significant. While carbon tax is very important, it is only one measure. We are missing out on that big piece. If the committee is having a discussion on carbon tax, I implore it to consider whether the fuel allowance could be increased by €4 a week for the heating period to avoid a negative impact on energy poverty.