Mr. Joseph Cummins:

To comment on the question of the bounce, what we are trying to do now is to get our supports and information system to a level that will enable companies to be clear about what they are being asked to do. Some of the feedback in the past referred to there having been talk about the green transition but that people did not know what it meant for their businesses. We are now, therefore, trying to put in place the basics to ensure everyone will have the right information and will be working to the same goal. Some of the endeavours we are undertaking in this regard include the climate toolkit for business and the GreenStart and the GreenPlus supports that allow companies to develop plans suitable to their own businesses.

In terms of the bounce, this is the next step. The corporate sustainability reporting directive essentially puts a reporting requirement on all large businesses. They will then have to assess the supply chains of products and report against them under the new regulations.

Frankly, we think this will put the squeeze on large portions of the economy. Plenty of small businesses that may not have had to report in this way before will now be asked by the companies they are selling to in their supply chains to provide information on carbon, sourcing, circularity, packaging, waste, etc. We think, therefore, that this squeeze is coming, and we are trying to ramp up the availability and awareness of these supports to ensure companies are not left behind. We want to have a transition where all SMEs have access to the right information and expertise to put in place plans that will allow them to demonstrate their sustainability and make the required investments over a period of a decade or so to ensure they will be able to meet their requirements.

I echo the point made by Dr. Coates. This has become a central message from our Department and also one from the sectors we serve. It is certainly a competitive discussion now. The food sector is particularly exposed, but across many sectors the sustainability and carbon footprint of products and services being sold is now a competitive advantage in the supply chains in which they operate. We will be under pressure to enhance our own competitiveness as an economy by making the right investments now to enable our industrial base, and the SMEs that cluster around it, to transition enough to maintain a competitive position in those value chains.

We are looking at the suite of offers we provide as a Department and how we integrate climate and decarbonisation into those offers. It should not be a situation where we talk about management capability or digitalisation or training in the absence of talking about decarbonisation. This will have to be a part of each of these conversations and we will need to build into those supports a requirement, ultimately, that companies must have a climate action plan in place and an understanding of how to address their sustainability. I say this because, frankly, we should not be giving companies management capability training or research and development supports if they have not thought about this transition. This is the next stage in terms of making this aspect more central in how we deal with every company interacting with our local enterprise offices, Enterprise Ireland, Industrial Development Authority Ireland, the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland and other agencies of the State.