Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the witnesses for their time and for attending in such numbers. I would like to ask the simplest question first. What do the witnesses envisage being the biggest challenges in delivering this rapid transformation? I am interested in hearing their insight as to whether they are behavioural issues, people understanding and acting differently or developing technologies, market interventions, pricing and so on? What are the biggest challenges and how might that guide us?

Another thing that is coming up very hotfoot after we agree overall budgets is the issue of the balance across sectors and how to make trade-offs between adjustments that might be perceived as difficult in one sector versus those in other sectors. Again, I am interested in hearing how, having scanned all of the sectors together, the witnesses would guide the political people in balancing the trade-offs that clearly exist. I am aware there are bands, but within the bands there appears to be a big difference. For example, in agriculture, there is a 30% reduction and a 22% reduction. They imply very different sorts of impact, potentially.

Those are very basic questions. The issue of land use was not there before. Obviously, we have to deliver 51% in that additional arena. Do we have the policy tools required, or have they been worked up to the same degree as in the other areas? They are my first questions for the witnesses.