Dr. Aoife O'Grady:

I thank Deputy for the question. To reiterate the comments my colleague Mr. Martin has just made, that while EVs are a significant part of the Department of Transport's action to reduce carbon emissions and they are probably the single biggest element of our carbon reduction plan, they still would equate to only 40% of our total emissions reduction. Therefore, the majority of emissions reduction will actually come not from the electrification of the fleet but from active travel, sustainable travel, demand management and the increase in the use of renewable and sustainable biofuels in our petrol and diesel mix. To reiterate again, part of the plan for electrification is not just the electrification of the private passenger car but of the taxi fleet, freight and the public transport fleet. All of those will not just bring carbon emissions benefits but also significant air quality benefits in urban areas.

In terms of rural areas, alongside the increased sustainable mobility, we know short journeys in rural areas can transition to active and more sustainable travel modes, but we also know many citizens in rural Ireland rely on the private car for use. Where it is not possible for them, we would look to avoid-shift-improve system. Where it is not possible for citizens who rely on the private car either not to make the journey or to shift to a sustainable form of transport, the next stage is to improve the technology. We would hope the electrification of the fleet in rural Ireland by the end of the decade would support decarbonisation of those trips.