Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Deputy for his questions and his comments on the recognition issue, which a number of his colleagues also raised. The Deputy raised an important point on the need for remembrance and the fact we tragically lost so many people to Covid-19. It is appropriate that we recognise and remember all those we lost, including those we lost in the last 18 months not due to Covid, who were denied the send-off they otherwise would have got. It has been a difficult 18 months for the whole country. It would be such a shame, having had so much solidarity across society in the last 18 months, if we were to end up with a divisive approach to this issue. I am determined to avoid that and the best way to do that is to consult wider stakeholders, including trade union leaders, employer bodies and civic society. We will do that as a Government and bring forward a proposal because recognition is warranted, justified and will take place. The manner in which the Deputy and other colleagues presented it is the correct way to do it. It is not an easy issue and it is not about a reward or anything like that really. You cannot reward people for the type of work they did and the sacrifices they made but some recognition by the Government is warranted.

I am looking forward to the publication of the national development plan on Monday. I thank the team in my Department, led by Ronnie Downes, the assistant secretary, and the national investment office, who did outstanding work over many months on the review of the plan. It is an exciting, ambitious plan and the Deputy touched on the kernel of it. It is now about the delivery and implementation of this plan. If we implement this plan and the funding is there to do so, it will be transformative in so many parts of the country. We have put balanced regional development at the heart of the new plan.

The Deputy touched on some specific issues, including road projects. While I will not get into individual road projects that may or may not feature in the national development plan, suffice to say there will be road projects in the plan. I acknowledge the great progress being made on the ground with the N22 project, the Macroom-Ballyvourney bypass, which the Deputy, Deputy Michael Healy-Rae and many others have a keen interest in. I am monitoring the progress of that and it is great to see it going so well. The major Dunkettle interchange project is also under way in Cork and progressing well. There will be road projects in the national development plan but the plan needs to be consistent with our climate action obligations. The Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications, Deputy Eamon Ryan, will bring forward a climate action plan to the Government shortly.

As the Deputy is aware, that involves carbon budgets that need to be implemented if we are to meet our targets of a 51% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 and carbon net neutrality by 2050. That is a difficult challenge but it is one to which we must rise, so there will be an emphasis in the new national development plan on public transport, active travel and all forms of sustainable transport. It will, of course, involve investment in road infrastructure, but I wish to set the overall context for the Deputy and colleagues.

As regards the immediate issues raised by increases in the carbon tax, we acknowledge that those increases, which must happen and have already been legislated for by the Oireachtas, pose a challenge for many people across society and for parts of the economy. We will seek to respond to that in our budget presentation. We are conscious of the need to insulate people insofar as we can from the impacts of carbon tax, but also rising electricity and fuel prices. The Minister, Deputy Humphreys, and I will be bringing forward proposals on budget day in that regard.

The Deputy touched on the important issue of the implementation of the retrofitting programme, whether through the warmer homes scheme or the better home energy grants. The current waiting times for those who apply to the warmer homes scheme are too long. We need to do much better. In the budget last year we provided a significant increase in funding for the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland, SEAI, and the implementation of schemes such as the warmer homes scheme. I should be fair and acknowledge that Covid-19 had an impact on the ability of contractors to go into homes and get this work done. In addition, there is a shortage of contractors in this space. That is why we are investing more funding in upskilling, training and providing opportunities for people who want to move into the sector. A significant amount of public money will go into this space in the next ten years and we need to make sure we have the capacity to deliver it.

This has been a difficult year. The Department will have a significant underspend on capital, not just because of the impact of Covid on the ability to retrofit homes, but also due to its impact on the national broadband plan. That is an issue on which I and the Minister, Deputy Ryan, are working. We will do everything we can to accelerate the roll-out of the broadband plan. It suffered a setback during Covid-19. The funding is secure for its implementation and I am open to all and any options to accelerate the roll-out of the plan. Covid has certainly underlined the need for connectivity in all parts of Ireland and, with more people now working from home or community hubs and so on, the need for high-speed broadband is imperative for the economy and society.