Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for his very positive comments and his emphasis on the need for urgency on this issue. The report of the Joint Committee on Climate Action, responding to the Citizen's Assembly report on climate change, was formally launched on 16 April 2019. This report marks the beginning of a new era for climate policy in Ireland. The report represents all-party consensus on many of the tough and ambitious actions the Government must take to address its international climate commitments and go beyond that to become a leader in tackling climate change globally. We as an Oireachtas have shown leadership, bringing all political groupings together to reach strong cross-party support for the practical recommendations outlined in our report. There have been calls for this type of good practice on climate policy to be replicated across Europe.

We know the science around climate change is becoming increasingly urgent. The special report by the Intergovernmental Conference on Climate Change, IPCC, on global warming of 1.5° Celsius was the starkest warning yet that we are running out of time to address runaway climate change. In Ireland we are beginning to see some of the initial effects of climate change through extreme weather events, such as flooding, affecting our homes, farms and businesses. Our citizens and, in particular, our young people are mobilising to demand stronger climate action to secure their future. Our Citizen's Assembly was clear in its call for Ireland to do more to address this existential threat. In establishing the joint committee to look at the recommendations of the Citizen's Assembly and in producing our detailed report for action, the Oireachtas has shown that we are listening to Irish citizens, that we take climate change extremely seriously and that we must take strong and immediate action to address it.

I wish to take this opportunity to acknowledge the great work of the Joint Committee on Climate Action over the last seven months. I commend my committee colleagues, across all political groupings, for their commitment to this process. I express my thanks to Deputies Butler, Corcoran-Kennedy, Pringle, Eamon Ryan, Sherlock, Bríd Smith, Stanley, Deering, Dooley, Heydon, Lahart, Munster, Jack Chambers, Neville and Nolan and to Senators Paul Daly, Devine, Lombard, Marshall and Grace O'Sullivan. Parties should be proud of reaching a strong consensus position on many of the tough actions the Government must take for Ireland to play its part in fairly addressing climate change globally.

The committee's report provides a clear mandate for actions the Government must take to address Ireland's international climate change obligations. It is large and particularly detailed for an Oireachtas report, containing more than 40 priority recommendations for Government and State agencies. It addresses actions across all relevant sectors and proposes a new governance framework for climate policy that will pave the way for more transformational changes in individual sectors. It also covers cross-cutting themes such as incentivising climate action, just transition, citizen engagement and education and communication. The report further highlights the opportunities for Ireland, recognising that there will be new green industries, new jobs and new export opportunities as we transition to a low-carbon economy.

We have tried to make the report accessible to citizens, highlighting the opportunities and co-benefits of low carbon living such as cleaner air, more comfortable homes and healthier lifestyles. We have tried to work with the different sectors, making recommendations that incentivise participants to drive the transition to a low-carbon economy. It is now up to the Government to use this bold political mandate in developing its all-of-Government action plan to feed into Ireland's national energy and climate plan.

I wish to focus on a few areas of the report that have received a lot of attention. Our report recommends new legislation setting ambitious climate and renewable electricity targets, putting Ireland in line with the latest science from the IPCC which calls for net zero emissions globally by 2050. The proposed legislation would also require five year carbon budgets to be devised by a new climate action council which would supersede the existing Climate Change Advisory Council to set a structured pathway for emissions reductions. The report further recommends that responsibility for climate action be centrally co-ordinated by the Department of the Taoiseach. In order to ensure adequate oversight and accountability, the committee recommends a new permanent Oireachtas committee that will hold Ministers and public officials directly to account for performance on climate action. This new governance framework would be truly transformational and would provide a robust structure to ensure that Ireland gets back on track and stays on track in tackling climate change. I urge the Government and the Oireachtas to fast track these legislative changes.

There was broad, cross-party support for setting a long-term price for carbon of €80 by 2030, giving certainty to individuals and businesses to drive the transition towards low-carbon choices, investment and innovation. This should be accompanied by supports and incentives for climate action measures including the protection of those vulnerable to fuel poverty. A public consultation was recommended to help to inform Government's decision on whether to return the revenue to citizens equally as a carbon dividend or to spend it in a targeted manner to address fuel poverty and support climate actions. Those who oppose any increase in the carbon price but criticise Ireland for not meeting its climate targets are pursuing a populist line that is not linked to the reality we face. The vast majority of our political parties recognise that increases in the price of carbon are necessary if we are serious about lowering our emissions trajectory. It would put an increasing cost on greenhouse gas emissions that reflects their social and environmental impact, encouraging business and citizens to pursue lower carbon choices. Increases must, of course, be balanced by enhanced incentives to support households and small businesses to decarbonise such as grant schemes and low interest loans.

In addressing agricultural emissions, the committee was mindful of the importance of this sector to the rural economy as well as the large proportion of our emissions generated by the sector. Members proposed that farmers should be encouraged and supported to engage in climate mitigation measures, some of which should be incentivised through the CAP. We also recommended the implementation of the Teagasc report in full and on-farm measures to reduce emissions and improve the sustainability of farming in Ireland, including through agricultural diversification. Measures to reduce soil carbon emissions and better enhance the carbon sequestration potential of land were also proposed through, for example, sustainable forestry practices, maintaining hedgerows and re-wetting peatlands. The committee also recommended a national strategy for anaerobic digestion.

The report acknowledges the urgent need to retrofit the majority of the housing stock in the State in order to reduce emissions from heating. It recommends a needs assessment to ascertain what is required to deliver this to the planned 45,000 homes per annum and to explore increasing that number to 75,000. On energy, the committee was mindful of the huge potential for expanding renewable energy generation in Ireland, especially off shore, to help us to meet our climate targets. The committee recommended actions to further and better exploit Ireland's plentiful renewable energy resources such as by urgently delivering a regulatory framework for offshore energy generation. The report also recommends measures to enable the participation of citizens in large commercial projects, to promote community led projects and support microgeneration. Developing offshore wind generation should become a priority and I urge Government and the Oireachtas to fast track legislation such as the Marine and Foreshore (Amendment) Bill to ensure a regulatory framework can be put in place as soon as possible to enable an offshore industry to develop. Offshore energy projects can contribute to Ireland's energy mix and help us to meet our 2030 targets.

It has been a privilege to chair the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Climate Action, which is supporting Ireland to meet its international climate obligations with a view to ultimately becoming a global leader in climate action. This report represents significant political consensus that will help to frame climate policy in Ireland for the next 15 years. It is my earnest hope that the recommendations in this report are implemented as quickly as possible, particularly those recommendations around the establishment of a new and comprehensive framework for climate policy in Ireland. The existing committee will continue its work over the coming year, working to address areas into which we were not able to delve in sufficient detail. Let the committee's report be the start of the ambitious and immediate actions Government will take to get Ireland back on track, and to keep us on track, to meet our international climate change obligations. This is just the beginning. The hardest job of reducing our emissions is yet to come but with continued cross-party support and much work across Government and all sections of our economy and society we can change the dial and ensure Ireland becomes a climate leader.

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