Mr. Erik O'Donovan:

For IBEC, on climate change, it is a matter of coherence. There are three targets, one for greenhouse gas emissions, one for renewables and one for efficiency. Arguably, tinkering with the emissions trading scheme, ETS, in recent times gives a different price signal within as opposed to outside it. Ireland faces some structural challenges in meeting the non-ETS targets. It is not that we need additional targets, but we must give the right price signal to get the ETS working and need to look at the structural challenges in respect of the non-ETS targets.

For us, we think it is probably too soon to have new targets for climate for 2020 because at the moment new targets are being negotiated for the year 2030. Europe has already given a very clear signal as to what it wants by the year 2050 and it is essentially an upward trajectory. Ireland will face challenges and we in the business community are keeping a very close eye on those negotiations. If the matter is handled badly we believe it could cost the country an estimated €1.3 billion per annum. We need to have balance. We are talking about an EU deal for the year 2030.