Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to update the House on the past year's progress. The year went by quickly. On behalf of myself and the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government, Deputy Eoghan Murphy, I reaffirm our Department's commitment to working collaboratively with colleagues across Government so that we can collectively and successfully deliver and implement critical climate mitigation and adaptation actions and measures.

Since our statements last year, we launched Project Ireland 2040 in April. It is the overarching planning and investment framework for the social, economic and cultural development of Ireland. It includes a detailed capital investment plan for the period 2018 to 2027 - the €116 billion national development plan, NDP - in support of a long-term transformational spatial strategy, that being, the national planning framework, NPF, with a time horizon out to 2040. The aligned and shared vision of the NPF in tandem with the NDP represents a joined-up planning and investment strategy for Ireland's future growth and development focused on a series of ten shared national outcomes. Foremost among these is climate action and the national objective to transition to a low-carbon and climate resilient society by 2050. Policy that will assist in making that transition and meeting our climate obligations is woven through the NPF and the NDP. Shared outcomes reflected in both documents that are fundamentally supportive of climate action include compact growth, sustainable mobility and sustainable management of waste, water and other environmental resources. All of these include significant elements of policy that provide a strong platform for the development of measures and actions in response to climate change.

The overall NPF strategy seeks to achieve a better balance of development between the regions and a greater focus on Ireland's cities, supporting Ireland's rural fabric and targeting more compact growth in the development of settlements of all sizes from the largest city to the smallest village.

The NPF includes a number of specific measures. First, the Department is undertaking a review of the 2006 wind energy development guidelines. The review is addressing a number of key aspects, including sound or noise, visual amenity, setback distances, shadow flicker, community obligation, community dividend and grid connections. We will shortly commence a public consultation on the revised draft guidelines, together with the comprehensive environmental report under the strategic environmental assessment process, with the aim of issuing the finalised guidelines following detailed analysis and consideration of the submissions and views received during the consultation phase, which will be in approximately two months. When finalised, the revised guidelines will be issued under section 28 of the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended.

Second, in collaboration with the Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment, which leads on renewable energy policy, my Department is exploring the potential for enhancing national planning guidance on solar energy, which is often the subject of debate in the House, while also taking into account solar energy projects being assessed by planning authorities and the scope for future development of the sector in the context of the ongoing development of renewable energy policy. Should the need for specific planning guidance for solar farms be identified, this work will be further scoped and progressed. We do not believe that there is a need for such guidelines currently, but we will keep the matter under review.

We are also progressing the national marine spatial planning framework, which is making its way through the Houses. It was discussed in the Seanad and by a committee and is currently undergoing a public consultation phase, which will inform the framework. That plan will align itself with the NPF and we hope to have it completed and published in early 2020. We will be focusing on it. I will update the House during next year's statements.

Regarding the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive, EPBD, approximately 40% of total energy produced in Ireland is used in the building sector. The directive sets ambitious goals for energy efficiency and renewables in buildings by requiring nearly zero energy building, NZEB, performance for new buildings from 31 December 2020. In addition, the directive requires that major renovations to existing buildings are completed to a cost-optimal level where feasible. The implementation of NZEB is a key action for the built environment in contributing to Ireland's national low-carbon transition and mitigation plan. This has been completed for buildings other than dwellings and will take effect from 1 January 2019. It is planned to be in place for dwellings from mid-2019. These will contribute to emissions reductions from 1 January 2021.

A new element of the revised EPBD is the provision of infrastructure for the charging of electric vehicles. A lack of recharging infrastructure is seen as a barrier to the uptake of electric vehicles in the EU and the revised directive has new provisions that aim to accelerate deployment. We are in the process of drafting these regulations and will be publishing them for public consultation in 2019. We will have the regulations in place by March 2020.

Under the social housing retrofit programme, local authorities are undertaking an ambitious programme of insulation retrofitting, with the support of the Department, on the least energy efficient social homes. The programme has had two phases. Phase 1 focused on lower cost improvements such as cavity wall and attic insulation. Phase 2 is targeting higher cost, deeper retrofit measures, for example, fabric upgrades and glazing. Since 2013, funding of €120 million has been provided to improve energy efficiency and comfort levels in more than 65,000 local authority homes, benefiting those at risk of fuel poverty and making a significant contribution to Ireland's carbon emissions and energy reduction targets for 2020. Potentially, more than 2 million houses are to be addressed in the years ahead. That will be a focus for us.

I will not go through the issues of water and so on, but I can read the statement out to the House if needs be.

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