Mr. Kevin McPartlan:

The Deputy is suggesting a model that we are proposing, which is that of technology neutrality. As we say, there are different technologies that work for different applications. If you are running a delivery service with predictable hours in and around the city centre, frankly, and I say this as the CEO of Fuels for Ireland, it does not make sense that you would use anything other than an EV for that. It might be surprising to some people to hear me say that. If you are doing very long journeys in heavy goods vehicles, at the moment the only real option you have is an internal combustion engine. Therefore, we should be looking at how we can reduce the emissions from that use. Our friends and colleagues in Irish Road Haulage Association used support for HVO as an example. We could get lost in HVO. It is the current best and most available example. We should talk about advanced synthetic and biofuels. We should be looking at how we can use all available technology to reduce emissions across all possible uses. Advanced synthetic and biofuels are a good way of doing that in the context of internal combustion engines. We rely on internal combustion engines today and will continue to do so for a period. The Deputy is right to talk about HVO as a transitional measure. Perhaps we will hit absolute electrification. However, that prospect is not within our immediate sight so we must examine how to reduce emissions now from vehicles that will continue to use internal combustion engines.