Dr. Paul McGowan:

We are reducing our reliance on gas through the target for renewables. Achieving 80% renewables by 2030 will reduce the reliance on gas. The second point is that the sectoral emissions ceiling will reduce the reliance on gas. I do not want to put words in the Senator's mouth. She may be referring, for example, to the use of natural gas as a home heating fuel.

The majority of households are heated through the use of fossil fuels. The CRU does not have the power to require them suddenly to switch from gas to decarbonised electricity, but that is the direction of travel with new house builds and home retrofits. As Ms MacEvilly pointed out, there will be a reliance on gas to 2030 and beyond to meet those periods when intermittent generation is not available and while the system's services are being developed. This means there will be a continuing reliance on the gas grid. As such, there must be a balanced transformation of the energy system to ensure that the lights stay on.