Dan Neville (Limerick West, Fine Gael)

——and encourage alternative crops. I have raised both issues on the Adjournment on several occasions and will not rehearse them now.

I wish to speak about bioenergy policy. The level of funding available to energy action and all those similarly engaged with the specific focus of bringing existing housing stock up to the insulation standards of newly built houses is totally inadequate. The grant should be extended to householders who wish to convert existing home heating technology to renewable energy up to the value of between €500 and €3,500. The grant aid to householders who wish to properly insulate their homes should be up to the value of €500.

We should move towards a target of 33% of Ireland's electricity needs from renewable sources by 2025 through a mix of direct State investment and a regulatory regime that gives access to the national grid to renewable energy sources above all others. The State should prioritise the creation of a network of wind turbines to harness the potential of wind energy, especially offshore wind energy. Our potential to do this is the best in the EU.

Investment and commitment will ensure the putting in place of the necessary interconnecting infrastructure which will ensure continuity of supply in the event of a reduction in wind supply. Consideration should be given to the separation of the ESB from the national grid, a matter on which I would like to hear the Minister's view. This would ensure a level playing field for all energy suppliers. In my council area, there is a massive 200 acre landfill. There is an opportunity to recover landfill gas in all landfill sites and waste water treatment plants as far as practicable for the generation of electricity to be fed into the national grid and for private use. Bord na Móna should be included in the overall development of energy policy, given its expertise as an energy provider and its ability to play a meaningful role.

With regard to the project for west County Limerick, all excise duty on biofuels produced from renewable crops should be removed. That is key to developing a biofuel industry.

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