Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Tuesday, 28 June 2022

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action

Sectoral Emissions Ceilings: Discussion

Photo of Alan FarrellAlan Farrell (Dublin Fingal, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome our guests from the Departments and thank them for appearing before the committee. I only have one question. That is because my other questions have been asked by previous speakers. The question relates to the Department of Transport's incentivisation that was referenced with regard to electric vehicles and dissuading people from acquiring high carbon emitting internal combustion engine, ICE, vehicles. Has the Department considered vehicle registration tax, VRT, as a mechanism for incentivising more purchases of electric vehicles? If it has, are there any study documents that it could share with the committee? Further, the taxation bands currently target the CO2 emissions of the vehicle. Is there scope for further mechanisms to dissuade people? Perhaps I should qualify that. Over the last few years there have been very small increases in the tax that is applied to vehicles. Is it time for us to consider stepping up those bands or has the Department looked at the effect that it might have on the availability of EVs, whether they be plug-ins or fully electric, given the global demand that exists and the slowness of the market to respond? Would there be a net negative effect on the market and would people therefore default to ICE vehicles?

The other question relates to public transport. I note Mr. Martin's comments regarding fares, which is very welcome. I am hopeful that we can make the right decision for 2023, and that hope is probably shared by the vast majority of members of the committee. I would like to see it as something we would do on an ongoing basis. However, regarding the modal shift that is required in terms of incentivising people to use alternative forms of transport rather the private car, I get the impression that it is very difficult for local authorities to spend the money they have on delivering cycle lanes and cycle tracks. Some local authorities have been amazing and some not so much. Would the Department be able to provide the committee with an overview of how effective the budgetary outlay has been in the last year and-or project into next year? It would be helpful for us to try to formulate a picture of what we can do to incentivise local authorities to spend that money.

My final point relates to EV charging facilities infrastructure. My local authority, with Dublin councils, has published its strategy document, which is welcome. I cannot help but refer back to Deputy Bruton's recent comment that local authorities have been quite dismal at rolling out EV charging infrastructure, so I am pleased to see a strategy document in place. Will the Department comment on that with regard to other local authorities, particularly in cities and provincial towns around the country, and how we can get local authorities and the Department to ramp up the delivery of public charging infrastructure?

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