Ms Clare O'Connor:

I thank the Chair and members of the committee for the opportunity to address the important issue of energy poverty on behalf of Friends of the Earth.

Friends of the Earth is committed to advocating for faster and fairer climate action; this means a rapid reduction in emissions, in line with our carbon budgets and in a way in which everyone can benefit from, and which does not result in increased inequality. Addressing energy poverty alongside emissions reductions is a vital step in ensuring the realisation of the sustainable development goals of leaving no one behind in this transition and reaching the furthest behind first. We wholeheartedly welcome the committee's focus on this issue and we appreciate the in-depth debate that has happened over the past number of weeks. We believe the committee has established a comprehensive overview of the current challenges and barriers to addressing energy poverty and I will therefore focus this statement on putting forward solutions that address energy poverty that are also aligned with ambitious climate action. I will speak to six key areas to address this.

As for the accessibility of Government retrofitting schemes, we welcome the continued expansion of the warmer homes scheme, which is a positive example of how Government can tackle energy poverty and emissions reductions effectively. Despite these steps, we still see many households falling through the cracks as they do not have the upfront capital to avail of the general SEAI grants and they fall outside the eligibility for the warmer homes scheme. Tenants in the private rental sector in particular are excluded from this scheme. Therefore, we recommend that the warmer homes scheme be expanded to ensure that all low-income households in low BER homes are eligible, regardless of home ownership status.

The first step to this is to include tenants in receipt of HAP, on the condition of a long-term lease being offered to those tenants. We also recommend a targeted approach to both the warmer homes scheme and to the local authority retrofit schemes whereby the areas most at risk of energy poverty are identified and prioritised across these schemes, as well as for project aggregation.

As for the matter of fossil fuel lock-in, I wish to preface this by noting that Ireland currently has the lowest levels of renewable heat across the EU. Friends of the Earth is extremely concerned around the slow roll out of renewable heat across Ireland and is particularly concerned that the warmer homes scheme continues to install oil and gas boilers into the homes of people at risk of energy poverty. In doing so, it locks these households into burning fossil fuels for at least the next decade, possibly two decades. We are risking effectively creating a two-tier energy system whereby wealthier households have the agency to move off fossil fuels and to reap the benefits of decarbonisation, while those on lower incomes are locked into burning fossil fuels that will become more expensive and more polluting. Therefore, we recommend that all households who are eligible for the warmer homes scheme are given the opportunity to avail of renewable heat such as district heating and heat pumps. That would ensure that they are not locked into fossil fuels. We recommend that the Government reviews and updates the mandate of Government bodies, such as Gas Networks Ireland, to prevent the expansion of gas networks and fossil fuel lock-in.

We note the need for cross-departmental collaboration on such a complex issue as energy poverty. We commend the committee's inclusion of relevant Departments and civil society organisations at these meetings. It should be noted that many of the recent recommendations from the European Commission on energy poverty focus on the need for member states to ensure that energy poverty is included in wider and integrated social policies and the need for holistic, cross-departmental collaboration. This is particularly relevant at the moment, given the upcoming review and update of the Government's energy poverty action plan which will require a whole-of-government approach if it is to effectively tackle the structural causes of energy poverty. We recommend the establishment of a national cross-disciplinary working group on energy poverty that includes civil society organisations, supports development and implementation of the upcoming energy poverty plan and incorporates recommendations from the European Commission's guidance on energy poverty. We also recommend that the new energy poverty strategy sets targets for a reduction of energy poverty and that the strategy is placed on a statutory footing.

The issue of energy affordability forms a cornerstone to addressing energy poverty. Income supplements like the fuel allowance are vital. However, they often fall short of addressing the structural issues of high energy costs. Alongside increasing all social welfare rates to address insufficient incomes, we recommend that consideration be given to redesigning the fuel allowance such as a year-round, tiered payment with eligibility based on BER and household incomes. I refer to the energy guarantee scheme, which has been recommended by Age Action and the Vincentian MESL Research Centre. We recommend that support for renewable technology is included in the energy poverty schemes to reduce energy costs such as including solar PV in the warmer homes scheme and widening the roll out of innovative approaches like EnergyCloud to include local authority homes and people who are on waiting lists for the warmer homer scheme as well. I am aware EnergyCloud were before the committee last week as well.

Retrofitting of social housing and approved housing bodies, AHBs, is a key opportunity to enhance energy efficiency and alleviate energy vulnerability. Current Government targets are set at just 25% of all social housing to be retrofitted by 2030. We see an opportunity for increased targets. The Department could set a more ambitious target to retrofit all social housing by 2030. They could prioritise the worst performing houses and include a multi-year strategy for local authorities and AHBs so they would have clarity on multi-year funding. This would require increased funding for both of these cohorts.

Lastly, community engagement and accessibility of information on retrofitting and energy poverty are paramount. A proactive approach must be taken by the State to go to directly to communities with this information and to support households directly with retrofitting. We propose the establishment of a community energy advice service in every local authority to provide a local, tailored support service so people can access the financial advice they need. It would collaborate with civil society organisations to identify households that are at risk of energy poverty and target them in a retrofitting scheme and provide support in applying for retrofitting grants as well as support throughout the retrofitting process. We also recommend leveraging partnerships with existing community groups that are trusted within communities, such as sports clubs, to foster climate awareness and action and to co-create tailored solutions that work for local communities based on their needs.

In conclusion, I reiterate our gratitude to the committee's commitment to addressing this issue and we hope that all our long list of recommendations is included in the committee's upcoming report. I thank the committee.