Catherine Martin (Dublin Rathdown, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

Táim sásta tacaíocht a thabhairt don mBille seo. From the GAA to Tidy Towns to meals on wheels, Ireland's strength lies in our community spirit and activism. The Green Party has always believed that Ireland can be a leader on renewable energy by allowing communities themselves to benefit from the transition to a low-carbon economy, not just large private companies. We have long championed a payment for community microgeneration and introduced a pilot payment scheme in 2009 which the next Government regrettably removed in 2014. We welcome this Bill as it is in line with recommendations made in our submission to the public consultation on the new renewable electricity support scheme and our own Community Energy (Co-ownership) Bill 2017. Our Bill lays out guidelines for a community co-operative investment model to accompany the mandatory offer of shares to local people. The Green Party's community co-ownership model is based on a successful Danish scheme which has resulted in greater community engagement in the transition to a renewable economy in Denmark. Since 2009, the Danish renewable energy act requires all new wind projects to be at least 20% owned by local people. We have also introduced on First Stage in the Dáil the Just Transition (Worker and Community Environmental Rights) Bill to oversee the implementation of the EU's new governance of the energy union package and Ireland's national energy and climate plan, ensuring that climate action is taken in a manner that is just and fair to workers, local communities and farmers.

Renewable energy is the only way forward for our climate, planet and future. It is essential that as we move towards a greener economy, the transition is fair and community-led. This Bill will enable households, small businesses and farmers to receive payments from electricity generated from renewable energy sources. The Bill has the support of Friends of the Earth, Stop Climate Chaos, An Taisce and Trócaire. We need to ensure that any payment is provided in a fair and just manner. The Green Party will therefore make amendments on Committee Stage to ensure that the Bill does not encourage the wealthiest to go off grid while leaving the poorest reliant on ever-increasing energy prices produced by fossil fuel-heavy utilities.

Ireland is at its best at the community level. With the payment for microgeneration, Irish communities could develop their own local power plants, from the roof of the local school, community hall or farm shed, and become active participants in the energy transformation we so desperately need. Energy should be viewed as a public good and a service to society, not a mere commodity. Ireland has the fourth highest electricity prices in the EU and, during the summer, the electricity suppliers again raised their prices. Irish citizens are treated as economic resources to extract from, but we should be democratic owners and participants in the great renewable energy transition. We must also recognise that reducing our energy use is where the largest amount of success can be had on climate action, providing high-quality jobs and reducing energy poverty.

The Government needs to take real climate action to protect citizens from unnecessary deaths from cold and bad housing; to transfer State bodies such as Bord na Móna from exploiting peat to long-term, high-quality jobs in providing high-quality, warm and nearly zero energy homes; to launch a long-term plan to retrofit housing across the State, taking leadership and creating a positive market in the process; and to empower local communities to be integral parts of a just transition to a new green economy. Tonight's Bill is a good step in the right direction and the Green Party is happy to give it our support.

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