Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the witnesses for their presentations. I would like to explore that last point. As Mr. Coghlan noted in his opening remarks, we have been doing a lot of work regarding climate budgets, the various ministerial presentations, the annual plans and the Climate Change Advisory Council's commentary on those plans. I get the sense that it is now all about delivery.

Is it to ask to go back and start consulting again? I acknowledge that they are different processes. If there is a lack of decision-making capability, I just wonder where it would be best deployed. Is it in sorting out why we do not yet have a just transition commission in the legislation presented? Why are we still struggling to get planning permission for onshore wind, renewables and so on? I would like to explore how we can align these two processes and not have separate consultation and separate attempts to mobilise the public.

The concentration now politically has to be on getting people to buy into the need to change the habits of a lifetime, not going back to consult about things that might be seen as rather arcane EU requirements on the way we present what we are trying to do. I admit that the long-term perspective is one we need to understand with regard to the direction of travel. It seems that we need to rationalise these issues. I urge that there be no structural changes because if the structure changes in Departments, that will put it back for another period because the deck chairs will need to be rearranged and nothing will happen until they are in their new positions. We need the witnesses to identify for us a few changes that could align these processes in order that when we do make the big annual effort, they will also be pushing the boat along with these other elements. That is my sense of the matter. As Mr. Coghlan half acknowledged earlier, we have limited resources in the Department, in the Climate Change Advisory Council and in the Departments that are mobilising change. We really have to deploy the resources as best we can.

That is my tuppence ha'penny worth. It is not to diminish these processes, but I ask the witnesses to give us a route to aligning them in a more simple way.