Liz McManus (Wicklow, Labour)

I thank the Minister for his reply but I must state he did not tell us a huge amount. When his Department issued a press release in respect of this matter, we were informed that a working group was to be established. I do not mean to nit-pick but this has metamorphosed into a task force to which three working groups are attached. That is a matter of concern because it appears there will be much deliberation but not many results. The press release issued by the Minister promised that the electric vehicles working group would publish its report in April but this clearly did not happen. When will that report be published?

The Minister did not indicate whether industry representatives are included in the membership of the task force. He stated the initial roll out will take between 12 to 18 months. What does this mean? How will the strategy relating to this matter actually work? A target of 10% has been set and a task force has been established. However, the nature of the strategy is unclear. What legislative requirements will be necessary to ensure the target is achieved?

In recent days it emerged there is a real danger of electricity blackouts in Dublin as a result of insufficient capacity. Has the Minister, in conjunction with the ESB, given consideration to this matter in the context of the additional capacity that would be required to meet the target he has sent in respect of the roll-out of electric vehicles?

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