Terence Flanagan (Dublin North East, Fine Gael)

I welcome the opportunity to contribute to this debate on climate change and I thank the Minister for being present. Climate change is without doubt one of the biggest challenges facing humanity in the 21st century. Man-made greenhouse gas emissions are its main causes.

Under the Kyoto Agreement, Ireland made a commitment to limit the increase of greenhouse gases to 13% above our 1990 levels but we have broken that commitment. Current levels of Irish greenhouse gas emissions are more than 25% above 1990 levels, and we need to take serious measures to address that.

I am disappointed that the Government will now have to spend at least €40 million next year to buy credits that will allow pollution in the Republic to exceed limits set in the Kyoto Agreement. It is both costly and environmentally unsustainable to continue to buy our way out of international agreements we have entered into on climate change.

The operators of Wind Energy Ireland, a consortium of business people and businesses who wish to establish offshore wind energy projects are preparing at present to invest €4 billion in these projects but they need co-operation from the State. EirGrid, the State company responsible for managing the electricity grid, would have to upgrade and make significant changes to the grid to facilitate this expansion of offshore wind energy capacity. What plans has the Minister to upgrade the national grid? It is estimated that if this development took place, the savings to the State would amount to approximately €235 million per year and that the electricity produced would meet the electricity needs of approximately half of the State's households. This Minister might address this issue when replying.

I welcome the appointment of Fine Gael Deputy Seán Barrett as chairman of the Joint Committee on Climate Change and Energy Security and wish him well in this demanding and challenging role.

It is stated that the transport sector in Ireland has been responsible for 33% of our energy-related CO2 emissions, which is higher than the emissions produced by any other sector here. Final energy use in the transport sector has been the fastest growing rate of all sectors. Growth of 8% was recorded in 2005. Energy use in transport has been more than 99% dependent on oil products, all of which are imported. This needs to be urgently changed in the future. Additional efficiency gains would have been made if not for the purchase of larger cars by families. We need to tackle the growing trend of the purchase by households of large-scale jeeps and vans.

Under the National Climate Change Strategy 2007-2012, the Government has made the following key commitments. One is to hit the Kyoto target of 13% above 1990 levels of greenhouse gases for the period 2008-12 and to cut emissions to 20% below 1990 levels by 2020. The current level is 25% above 1990 levels, which is worrying. We have much work to do to achieve these targets. Some 15% of electricity is to be generated from renewable sources by 2010 and 33% by 2020. Biomass is to contribute up to 30% of energy input at peat stations by 2015. A sustainable transport action plan is to be published in late 2007.

However, there are problems with the Government's commitments. The national climate strategy scores poorly on costings. For instance, there is no analysis of how much it would cost to produce 33% of our energy from renewable sources. This would involve mostly wind energy and the cost of producing a new network infrastructure. My party is firmly committed to the green agenda and renewable energy sources. However, a detailed cost plan should accompany Government promises in this area. There is very little detail on how the Government plans to reduce Ireland's emissions by 3% each year into the future. An uncosted plan to switch to renewable energy, improve efficiency and public transport is not good enough. There is a contradiction in Government policy on a carbon tax. There is no mention of it in the national climate change strategy but the programme for Government states "Appropriate fiscal instruments, including a carbon levy, will be phased in on a revenue-neutral basis over the lifetime of this Government." Will the Minister advise as to the whether the Green Party involvement in the Government will mean that the climate change strategy, which was agreed in April, is now redundant?

My party believes that the twin challenges of climate change and the need to adjust our energy usage patterns are the most urgent facing Ireland and the rest of the world. We believe in an efficient, vibrant and competitive energy market where supply is secure and the need to reduce consumption is always recognised.

Climate change is such a serious issue that it is time for the Government to establish a Department of environment and energy, which would co-ordinate policy in this area. We have paid too high a price for interdepartmental inertia, which has given us ten years of rising emissions and missed opportunities. My party in government would establish a centre of excellence for alternative energy, charged with ensuring Ireland develops a world class alternative energy sector. We would incorporate Sustainable Energy Ireland, as it exists, into the centre of excellence, to be located within an existing institute of technology, with outreach points in other academic institutions throughout the country. It would have specific responsibility to encourage, incentivise and develop the alternative energy sector, with the objective of replacing a major percentage of energy imports and securing supply.

The Minister needs to improve grant aid initiatives for householders who wish to convert existing home heating norms to renewable energy technology in their homes. We also need to ensure the energy performance in buildings directive is implemented in full and in a timely fashion. We need to work towards ensuring that 30% of all new buildings are green and powered by renewable sources of energy. As regards electricity, Fine Gael would move towards generating 33% of Ireland's electricity needs from renewable sources by 2025. We would target an increase in renewable energy production to 17% by 2012 as an interim measure and legislate for the complete separation of the ESB from the national grid, while keeping both in State ownership, to ensure a level playing field for all energy suppliers.

The potential for wind energy in this country has not been realised. My party would ensure there was interconnecting infrastructure with other electricity markets to allow for significantly increased generation from wind. As regards bio-fuels and the role of agriculture, it is time for the Minister to remove all excise duty on bio-fuels produced from all renewable energy crops. Fine Gael in government would make available establishment grants for producer groups comprising up to 50% of set-up costs, subject to a maximum of €300,000 per group. We would examine the current rates of payment under the existing energy crops scheme and whether the sugarbeet crop should be included in the scheme to facilitate development of the bioethanol industry. We would initiate a public competition for the establishment and operation of a number of bio-fuel processing plants, strategically located in selected locations. Capital start-up grants for these plants would initially be given to enable them to become established and begin viable processing operations. We would also initiate a public awareness and promotion campaign to encourage the growth of bio-fuels.

As regards VRT, it is certainly time to reform vehicle registration tax through the establishment of a system of energy efficiency labelling for motor vehicles, with lower rates of VRT for those cars with more efficient engines. My party in Government would create a market for bio-fuels by legislating to provide that all motor fuels must include a blend of fuel from renewable sources. The EU has set a binding agreement of increasing the penetration of bio-fuels in transport to 10% by 2020. Fine Gael in government would accept this target and aim for an increase to 5% as an interim measure by 2012.

It is time for the Government to take action on climate change. We all have a positive role to play in our daily lives regarding energy conservation, but certainly the Fianna Fáil-Green Party coalition in government needs to drive policy in reducing CO2 emissions and help save our planet. I look forward to the Government ensuring we meet out Kyoto commitments in the future and that we stop paying unnecessarily for carbon credits, wasting taxpayers' money.

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