Mr. Conor O'Neill:

I thank the Cathaoirleach for the questions. Something that Christian Aid and Trócaire wanted to make clear in our opening statements with regard to the research is that we recognise the magnitude. This is part of the reason we tried to focus and emphasise the tax side so much in the research, in the presentations today and at the launch in Leinster House two weeks ago with Deputy Marc Ó Cathasaigh. The financing question is the crucial flipside of what is required to deliver on climate action. We very much accept that if this is left up to the normal push and pull of parliamentary budgeting it is very unlikely we will get there because the resources needed are so significant. The flipside of this, however, is the call in the COP decision to explore what in COP parlance is termed innovative sources of financing. For example, yesterday I listen to former President Mary Robinson speak ahead of COP at UCC. She said that last year the fossil fuel industry made $4 trillion in profit. This is not revenue but profit. This is the loss and damage fund ten times over, plus change, at a global level.

The message is that business as usual will not be enough. We have to be good neighbours internationally with regard to how we try to capture these resources. As Ms Balfe mentioned in her statement, the question posed for Ireland is that there are two different directions we could go on this. With regard to the taxation of corporate profits and wealth, the current international arena is characterised by intense competition. There is often a beggar thy neighbour type of approach whereby countries, especially in the European Union, intensely compete against each other. We see effective rates fall to give companies the best deal because countries want them to base there. Even within the European Union as an economic bloc, we have not been able to flex collective muscle to turn this race to the bottom around and raise these types of resources.

Ireland cannot have it both ways. If we are to stay on the path we have been on, and see ourselves to a large extent as winners of the intense tax competition, the burden will fall on the fact we are running a massive budget surplus. On the other hand, if we are willing to engage in conversations - rhetorically, the Government has pushed in this direction - on taxation of wealth and corporate profits and levies on aviation and shipping, and we do this at a co-ordinated international level, it will mean that in the next five, six or seven years there will be less pressure on the core national budget. We would like to see the committee make this link. The climate action we speak about requires resources. It will be very difficult, if not impossible, to do this purely on the basis we have done so far. International co-operation will be essential if we are to do it properly.