Timmy Dooley (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I congratulate Mr. Byrne and thank him for the work he has done for the State and what he is endeavouring to do with SEAI. His latter contribution comes to the point that I want to look at. He has given some guidance about the one-stop-shop, which would certainly be useful to have. Notwithstanding the commercial reality that one has to go through in identifying options, we would all like to see our post office being used more appropriately to deliver State services. I see no better option than SEAI using the services of the post offices in communities to reach out to individuals who want more information. In the work that we did in the Oireachtas, much of the commentary was about people not knowing where to access the services. That is fine for those who are proficient online but there are others who want to make a contribution and to access these services or funds, and the post office provides that.

Following on from that, there are people who will not qualify for the schemes or will not have the appropriate amount of personal resources to do the work that is required, particularly on the deep retrofit side of things. Can Mr. Byrne tell us about any plans that might be in place to assist with that green financing, which was talked about in the past? What are his views in that regard? There are certainly people out there who want to do that deep retrofit but do not have the hard cash. Traditional banks will have their own views about where somebody is with his or her mortgage or other financial commitments. Has Mr. Byrne any views or ideas with regard to that area?