Phil Hogan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)

I wish to share time with Deputies O'Donnell and Reilly.

I acknowledge that we are in a budgetary position today where considerable emphasis has shifted to an area of policy put on the long finger for so many years. Fine Gael recognises the serious threat climate change presents to the global environment and believes urgent action is necessary. Ireland's emissions have grown to enormous proportions and in 2005 were 25% above 1990 levels. This sets out the challenge we face to reduce emissions and meet the Government's target of a 3% reduction in its lifetime. As Ireland has one of the highest levels of emissions in the world per capita, we should not underestimate the challenge which the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government has, rightly, set out as a major task in order to achieve the objectives of the programme for Government. I wish the Minister and the parliamentary delegation every success in working with our EU partners at the Bali conference in the next few days to ensure an ambitious target is set that will ultimately lead to a new Kyoto Protocol, the aims of which we can realise without delay.

It is all very well to introduce a carbon budget in the House. I note considerable emphasis in the flexible mechanisms section of the table produced by the Minister. This is the cop-out clause for not realising our objectives. The Minister did not set out in detail the way in which the programme for Government commitment of a 3% reduction in emissions would actually be achieved. He did not set out how we would negotiate or consult interests in the agriculture, transport, waste and the various sectors of the economy that contribute to higher emissions on how to reduce emissions to meet the necessary targets. The devil will be in the detail of these measures and the Minister has refused to go into detail today. He is to be excused on this matter but for seven years the previous Government knew about our difficulties in meeting our Kyoto Protocol commitments in conjunction with our partners in the European Union and did absolutely nothing. As Deputy Bruton noted yesterday, we have 500,000 new houses and 600,000 new cars. We could have done much of this in the past couple of years but the Government failed to do it.

On behalf of Fine Gael, I welcome the changes in the VRT system and the announcement by the Minister that from 1 July 2008, motor tax rates will be emissions-based. That is the fairest way to deal with CO2 emissions and give a choice to the people that when they buy motor vehicles, they will do so in the context of being incentivised to avail of new technology and take into account financial considerations in terms of the taxation regime. They will be able to make choices in respect of the output of emissions. If they want to pay €2,000 per year on motor tax, that is their prerogative, but I have no sympathy for those who want to make such choices. I welcome the fact that this initiative has been taken. As it concerns new cars, the motor industry will have an opportunity in the next six or eight months to deal with whatever issues they must deal with to meet the new regime that will apply from 1 July 2008.

The budget is about more than just dialogue among ourselves on what we can achieve. As I said, the devil will be in the detail of the practical measures that must be taken across various Departments to meet our objectives. In that context, a €15 million campaign undertaken by the Minister to promote climate change awareness is not necessary. Everybody is aware of the importance of meeting our climate change objectives. There is considerable detail in the discourse and debate about the objectives we must meet. Therefore, it is not necessary for the Minister to undertake a campaign at a cost of €15 million when we could put the money into the green homes initiative which was launched successfully some time ago but which ran out of money. We shifted €10 million from the broadband budget, which was essential, to the green homes initiative in order to pay those who applied to participate this year. Changing light bulbs is one thing but a €15 million campaign is another, especially when it will not meet our objectives. I do not think such a campaign is necessary.

On the local government fund, if one looks at the volume of expenditure in the Estimates published, one will see that local government funding is due to be reduced in gross terms by 2%. Therefore, the Minister failed at the Cabinet table to obtain sufficient resources from the Minister for Finance to meet obligations under the local government fund. As he had to raise money one way or another, he chose the easy option of motor tax. He made a grab for a figure of €83 million to top up the local government fund which resulted in a minor increase of 2%. Therefore, we went from a 2% reduction to a 2% increase after the announcement of the budget yesterday. When one looks at the enormous obligations on local authorities from the perspective of health and safety measures and measures relating to energy costs associated with tarring and restoring roads, both of which are beginning to bite, one will see a net increase of 2% in the local government fund will not go too far in 2008 to meet existing levels of service.

The Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government handed over all the money relating to non-national roads to the Minister for Transport whom I said was not the best man in the world to hand over money to because he was not good at dealing with such issues. His record is not great. The Minister of State at the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, Deputy Batt O'Keeffe, might agree with me that one cannot trust the Green Party when it comes to road expenditure, be it on non-national, regional, secondary or primary roads. All moneys must be dealt with by the Fianna Fáil Minister. When one sees the way in which Fianna Fáil has had a go at the Green Party during the years, this is understandable, as the Green Party has been very reluctant when it comes to expenditure on roads and motorways and has had to reverse on the issue in recent times. It is understandable, therefore, that the Minister for Transport will be dealing with the budget for roads rather than the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government.

The energy efficiency budget which is very important if we want to meet our emissions targets has been slashed in the budget. The Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources has some explaining to do, as the budget for energy efficiency initiatives has been slashed by 50%. This ignores the fact that better energy efficiency levels have been identified as one of the easiest and cheapest ways to reduce carbon emissions. Obviously, Fianna Fáil pays no attention to the few green agenda references in the programme for Government. There has been something of a capitulation on this issue.

The commission on taxation has been announced yet again. After six months in office one would imagine that the Green Party would have managed to get the commission up and running to deal with all the various taxation measures taken in the budget to realise some policy commitments.

There are no major initiatives announced to meet the objective of meeting 33% of Ireland's energy needs from renewable sources. This would involve mostly wind energy. The National Offshore Wind Association of Ireland estimates that it would cost between €600 million and €800 million to provide a new network infrastructure.

The budget is a continuation of the copying and pasting of the Fianna Fáil manifesto. A total of 15 of the 19 commitments on climate change in the programme for Government are lifted directly from the Fianna Fáil manifesto. The Green Party's attempt at a carbon budget is nothing more than spin, with the exception of the changes in motor tax, which I welcome. The target of reducing our emissions by 3% per year now seems a great challenge because, in the first budget, we failed to make a substantial leap forward or to outline the policy detail to meet those objectives.

I welcome the additional moneys for the Environmental Protection Agency and the National Heritage Council. I look forward to the proposals to monitor water quality, the environment and emissions. We should have regular reports to the Joint Committee on the Environment, Heritage and Local Government.

See this speech in context