Mattie McGrath (Tipperary South, Fianna Fail)

During her years in politics, she has been enthusiastic about many issues in her constituency and region. We have worked together on some community projects, including Ring a Link, and I have always found her to be hard working, energetic, enthusiastic and co-operative. I look forward to co-operating today in spite of the myths driven by the media or whoever concerning Fianna Fáil and the Green Party. We are all on the same mission, that is, representing our people and ensuring a safe, clean and guaranteed range of fuels that keeps our economy and households going at the best possible cost. There are many concerns regarding bio-fuels and the carbon tax, but we must try to explain the issue to people. Doing so is difficult, given the large increases in the price of oil.

The 2009 renewable energy directive requires that 10% of the energy used in transport in each member state will be generated via renewables by 2020. It is no mean objective. As one of the few available and effective means of reducing transport emissions, bio-fuels have a central role to play in the delivery of this target and in the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, as does developing electric vehicle technology. I am delighted to see the roll-out of such vehicles.

The bio-fuels excise relief schemes, which were launched by the Department in 2005 and 2006, have resulted in 18 projects being awarded excise relief for a period up to the end of 2010. The schemes were designed as interim measures to accelerate the level of bio-fuels in the fuel mix in advance of the introduction of a bio-fuels obligation. More specifically, they were designed to incentivise a move towards the inclusion of bio-fuels in the fuel market and to stimulate the industry's interest in their production, thereby providing an indigenous market.

In 2005, a pilot bio-fuels mineral oil tax relief scheme was rolled out at a cost of €6 million in revenue forgone. It covered three bio-fuel categories. Following the success of the scheme, a second and more ambitious scheme was announced in budget 2006. It will run until the end of 2010 and is valued at more than €200 million in excise forgone. Scheme II provides for four categories of bio-fuel, namely, bioethanol, bio-fuel complying with diesel standard EN590, pure plant oil, PPO, and bio-fuel for use in captive fleets. Some 102 applications were received under Scheme II, 11 of which were in the bioethanol category, 36 of which were in the EN590 category, 18 of which were in the PPO category and 37 of which were in the captive fleets category.

Many of the plants that are up and running happen to be close to the Minister of State's region in the south east, namely, counties Wexford and Carlow and Bellview in County Waterford. There are practical problems on the ground, so I take my hat off to the pioneers who are undertaking this work and showing leadership. I compliment a group in Clonmel headed by Ms Anne Kehoe that is growing bio-fuel as part of a national group of farmers. She has been a champion of many agricultural causes, but she has taken to this cause like a duck to water.

I appeal to the Minister of State to speak with her senior Minister to try to resolve some of the outstanding issues, namely, how some EU countries treat their suppliers and producers, taxation rebates etc. I have corresponded with the Ministers, Deputies Ryan and Gormley, on behalf of the fledgling Bellview group. It has an excellent location and the skillset and financial backing to get a plant up and running. I will not say that it needs some red tape cut, but there is considerable bureaucracy involved, as is often the case in other instances. These obstacles, while unintended, seriously inhibit the development of any business. I am not trying to take shortcuts in directives or safety standards. Instead, I am referring to the State seeing the glass as half full as opposed to half empty. The State should support these fledgling groups. They are putting their money where their mouths are. Their energies and land are being used to grow the crops. They are willing to invest in plants, but they need solid, positive co-operation. I appeal for that now.

I compliment a previous speaker from the opposite side of the House on his interest. Many people are out of work and farming is at a low ebb. Business people need and want to diversify because business has slowed. We need to keep the spirit of enterprise in our business people, young people and farmers, who are always willing to rise to any challenge. We will revert to the spirit of the late, great Canon Hayes, ní neart go chur le chéile. We would rather light a candle than curse the dark. We must return to basics, that is, our communities.

Current events regarding Glanbia are interesting. The Minister of State would be familiar with Glanbia, which began as a small co-operative of south County Tipperary farmers before expanding into Avonmore and becoming huge. However, it has been proven that big is not wonderful and Glanbia is being divided. We must revert to the co-operative methodology and its ideals and move bio-fuel production into small plants in parishes.

This brings me to the matter of creameries and co-operatives. Every day, buildings are becoming derelict in every community throughout rural Ireland. It is still a matter of great sadness to me that Glanbia Co-op's creamery in my village was closed down. A local community group tried to purchase the creamery to convert it into both an enterprise centre and a heritage centre. It was the first fully electrified creamery in rural Ireland and was opened by Seán Lemass in 1959 when, as my mother informs me, I was a small baby in the pram. The creamery was still thriving up to ten years ago, when the co-ops literally decided to abandon rural areas and the people who live in them. At that point they also decided to abandon their own ideals.

There are many empty buildings, factories, etc. - some of which are owned by IDA Ireland - in rural areas. If we used nearby lands, including some of that which has been transferred to NAMA, to grow the necessary crops, when harvested, these could be refined and used to produce fuel in the buildings and factories to which I refer, which could be converted for that purpose. The partnership companies - including the south Tipperary partnership - have access to funding. They are among the only companies which have such funding and submissions in respect of bio-fuel production can be made to them. However, there is a need for leadership from those on high. We must change people's philosophy and encourage them to buy in to what I am suggesting.

I am not opposed to wind energy or wind farms. However, big business became involved in this sector at the outset and this led to division, argument and protest in many communities. The position with regard to wind energy production is that a "them and us" scenario applies. It is similar to when the landlords held sway in this country. We must reverse what has happened and involve community development organisations, supported by the partnerships and the Government, and private individuals. By doing this, we can grow business. We must learn from the mistakes that were made in respect of wind energy.

Part of the problem with regard to wind energy production is that people did not understand what was happening. The other part was that they were not provided with information relating to the major conglomerates that became involved. In addition, a proper consultation process was not put in place. The Irish people are always ready to take up a challenge. However, they were not involved in the process relating to wind energy production. Companies were established and high flyers became involved. Wind turbines were erected willy-nilly and arguments arose.

Irish people are not willing to be led around by their noses. They will, however, walk any road with anyone in the interests of creating employment, stimulating business or developing badly needed alternative sources of fuel. Such fuels should be "of the people, by the people, for the people" and should be produced locally. That is the only way we will succeed in respect of this matter.

I have a passionate interest in this matter. A large part of County Tipperary was zoned as being unsuitable for wind energy production. This was not for any technical reason, rather it occurred because a group came together in a community and divisions arose. In fact an entire parish became divided, which was a pity, and legal costs were incurred by groups which opposed a wind energy project. We must return to basics and make not tosach maith leath na hoibre but tosach beag. After all, a small start is a good start.

I appeal to the Minister of State, Deputy White, in respect of this matter. She was involved with the Ring a Link project and understands the level of involvement and consultation that took place with communities in respect of it. This project, which relates to south Tipperary, Kilkenny and Carlow, is run by an excellent manager, a couple of paid staff and three voluntary boards. It is a wonderful model on which to base any community development project. As already stated, it is run by voluntary boards whose members must be fully versed in employment, health and safety and road transport legislation. Anyone involved in business would employ someone to deal with such matters on their behalf. However, voluntary boards - I am proud to be a member of one - are obliged to deal with such matters on their own.

The Ring a Link projects, which operate in many counties, have resulted in great value for money for the taxpayer and has provided freedom to people in rural areas and allowed them to leave their homes. A number of the buses operated by the project in my county have been converted to bio-fuel. At the outset, however, there was a problem with regard to the availability of bio-fuel in my county. We did not have access to it and travelling to Kilkenny in order to obtain it was not feasible.

As already stated, bio-fuel production must develop from small, humble beginnings. The relevant crops must be grown and harvested before being transferred to a local plant in order that they might be refined to produce bio-fuels. This might be a simple plan but at least it is manageable. We could expand from the type of small, local operations to which I refer to a larger co-operative model. We must ensure we do not go mad, as did those who were in charge of the dairy co-operatives, and make questionable foreign investments. There is a bitter legacy with regard to the latter.

bio-fuel production could assist in getting people back to work. There is a huge level of talent among the ranks of the unemployed at present. Those to whom I refer, including graduates, could be used to draft development plans, to carry out research, to draw up business plans, to form companies and then to train farmers in how to grow and harvest the relevant crops. As already stated, the abandoned buildings and factories that are still owned by the co-operatives and other interests - Glanbia, Dairygold and other major conglomerates - could be converted for use as refinement plants and this would create employment locally. These structures could be sold back to communities for a nominal price in order that they might be redeveloped.

A model such as that to which I refer will have to be adopted across many aspects of society if we are to meet the challenges we face. It is terrible to see the buildings to which I refer, which were previously the hubs of their communities, lying derelict. People met and transacted their business in and around these buildings. However, sin scéil eile. We must rediscover the ideals that obtained in the past and then work our way forward anew.

We have been joined by the Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Deputy Cuffe. I wish him well in his new position and offer him my total co-operation in respect of his work on the issues to which I refer. There is an agreed programme for Government in place and I look forward to implementing it with the Minister of State. He, his party colleagues and I may have our differences of opinion, but anything in the programme for Government is agreed. I have no difficulty in defending my beliefs or in outlining my love of rural pursuits.

I am firmly of the view that we will be able to develop, at a reasonable cost, a clean green fuel source that will serve our communities. If such a fuel source is developed locally, the costs involved will be reasonable. I am sure that, like me, other Members are anxious to get operations up and running. Public meetings should be held to gauge the level of interest in this matter. As already stated, farmers are interested in growing the relevant crops. I salute their efforts but we must now support them. We must ensure the refining of these crops and their use in production proceeds on a local basis. From this base, we can move towards introducing electric cars and other innovations. As I say all the time, we will have to have reasonable administration. It will have to be user-friendly and we will have to use a carrot rather than a stick. We must not be heavy-handed and say people must do something.

I refer to the carbon tax. The situation is very difficult currently. There is widespread annoyance, especially in the haulage business, in agriculture and in many other areas, about the price of fuel. I ask the Minister to postpone the tax for some time in view of the high cost of oil. Why does oil cost so much at the pumps? I understand the idea behind the carbon tax and its objectives, which I support. I voted for it in the budget. However, there are pressures on agricultural contractors given the tough year last year and the tough winter. There were losses with frost and so on and there are high costs involved.

People will not mind paying this carbon tax if they see tangible results. I accept there can be no gain without some pain. People will come with us but we must show them where this carbon tax is going. The plastic bag levy was introduced some time ago. Great strides were made but we lost our way. Unfortunately, the countryside has never been as dirty. I have been involved in spring cleaning campaigns and I salute all the people who help the national organisations and the local councils. We will have to do something to address the rubbish problem.

I visited a number of schools which won tidy schools awards last Tuesday morning. I compliment the children because they will show us the way forward. They will tell their parents or relatives not to throw litter out the window because it is wrong. We must also educate people about the carbon tax. We must ask the young people to show leadership because they will educate us. I wish these projects well and I hope the Minister will respond to my comments.

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