Mr. Hugo Sobral:

I thank the Chairman for his compliments which I will certainly share with colleagues who have contributed to the speech. On the question put by Deputy Calleary, I alluded to this in my initial contribution.

Since its accession Ireland has been a successful case of cohesion policy and converging with the rest of Europe. As I have also mentioned, it still has internal challenges and internal disparities that it needs to correct. This is not exclusive to Ireland. Many other member states, in fact almost all member states, have these internal disparities. It is true that this is still the case in Ireland. Between Dublin and Cork and rural areas we see a wide difference. There are also the northern areas close to the Border. We very much encourage member states to prioritise investment in this next generation of programmes. Cohesion is about convergence between member states and about correcting internal disparities. It is important that member states commit to the levelling up of various regions. In the case of Ireland this is certainly necessary. Deputy Calleary mentioned additional layers introduced at national level. It is not exclusive to Ireland but it is true that while sometimes we in Brussels are accused of being too heavy on processes there is also the gold-plating that sometimes comes from member states. For this generation of programmes we have tried to simplify their use as much as possible. It is important this is followed at national level in how it is implemented. Additionally, it is important that regional authorities are empowered. It is important that as much as possible these funds and programmes are managed close to the people and beneficiaries. Empowering regional and managing authorities is an important component of making the programmes more efficient in Ireland in future.

When it comes to the specific questions on the contribution of the Cohesion Fund to climate, the European Regional Development Fund has an obligation to contribute to climate. A total of 30% of the fund needs to go towards climate-related expenditure. I see a lot of potential in Ireland for energy efficiency of houses, which is an issue. This area is also being tackled under the recovery and resilience plan for Ireland, where complementarity can be established with cohesion policy. I also see a lot of potential in clean mobility and helping people to develop public transport systems that help people move from cars to buses and rail. The PEACE PLUS programme will also look at the potential for green transition and geothermal and renewable energy. There is a lot of potential for contributions from cohesion to climate transition in Ireland. We are discussing with the Irish authorities the prioritisation of the climate dimension and the digital transition and innovation dimension. These are the two big priorities we want to push across the board.