Ms Patricia King:

I thank the committee for the opportunity to address it on an issue that is crucial to the future of so many communities. Congress welcomes the national conversation that is taking place in respect of climate action and the transition to a low-carbon economy. We acknowledge the Government's recently-published climate action plan. However, given that trade unions and environmental groups globally have been discussing the carbon transition for some years and campaigning on the concept of just transition for at least two decades, it a source of deep concern that the debate in this country has only just begun. It should have started many years ago. At the very least, the Government should have taken the lead on this immediately on signing the Paris Agreement in 2016, which agreement binds us to specific targets and obliges us to implement a just transition. Instead, it appears that official policy constantly struggles to keep pace with events and that jobs are threatened or lost before any support is put in place. Inevitably, this leads to fear, uncertainty and distrust among the workers and their communities.

The current situation in Bord na Móna and the ESB is a major test for policymakers. Bord na Móna was established with a regional employment mandate and it has supported decent employment across the midlands over many decades. The phasing out of peat production also has implications for the ESB and the decision to close peat-fired stations by December 2020 has added to the fear and uncertainty for workers in the region. The prospect of a planned, orderly wind-down is now seriously diminished and the midlands is threatened by further economic decline. A coherent just transition framework would address the real fears of workers and their communities on the impact of the shift to greener energy production. In the case of Bord na Móna, this would entail programmes to ensure that workers could redeploy or reskill for new green jobs, but these programmes are not yet in place.

In budget 2020, the Government announced some €31 million for retraining initiatives and a retrofit programme - some of which might be old money - and initiatives on bog restoration, all of which may deliver up to 500 jobs, but there is no certainty in this regard. For example, there is no clarity regarding plans to repurpose the PSO levy to support job creation. Equally, it is our understanding that the platform for coal regions in transition provides technical, but not financial, support, while the carbon transition does not currently fall within the remit of the EU's Globalisation Adjustment Fund. The shift to a low-carbon economy offers significant opportunities for new and decent job creation in renewable energy generation, deep retrofitting, new infrastructure to reduce energy consumption and better public transport, but the State must take the lead and commit appropriate investment. The market cannot deliver on the scale that is required. The midlands already suffers relatively high levels of unemployment in comparative terms, while inward investment is among the lowest of all regions. More job losses and depressed local demand are unlikely to spark a sudden influx of new, private capital.

There are many examples of carbon transitions from which we can, including Germany, Australia, Canada, Spain, south Wales or Appalachia. Successful transitions are characterised by planning, inclusive social dialogue, the involvement of all stakeholders and by state-led investment. In Spain, Government, unions and employers reached a deal in 2018 that will see the orderly wind-down of the coal industry over the next decade and investment of some €250 million in the affected regions. This deal could serve as a useful template for policy here. Those transitions which have manifestly failed - south Wales and Appalachia - relied on the market to deliver. The result was social chaos and economic dislocation that is still evident today. Any transition must ensure the participation of affected workers and communities. This includes social dialogue with all key actors. For this reason, it is highly regrettable that Bord na Móna management has consistently refused to utilise the good offices of the Workplace Relations Commission, WRC, to engage in a forum with workers, whereby all relevant issues can be discussed and resolved. It is equally unfortunate that the Government, while appointing a just transition commissioner, has explicitly ruled out this position having any role in matters pertaining to workers. It is important to understand that workers and communities across the energy generation sector are being asked to sacrifice their livelihood's for the greater good of future generations. This creates a moral and social imperative for policymakers to ensure they do not become the collateral damage of decisions taken at a distant remove.

Bord na Móna and the midlands will serve as a litmus test for Ireland’s transition to a low carbon economy. If workers and their communities are abandoned to the market then support for the process will evaporate and opposition will grow. The incoming European Commission has advocated a European green deal similar to the green new deal advocated by unions and others. Congress believes Ireland should embrace this new initiative and devise a comprehensive and coherent strategy to ensure that no one is left behind on the road to climate neutrality.