Brian Stanley (Laois, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I asked the Minister of State when the review group will be set up. He might give me an answer to that question.

The Bord na Móna is the most acutely affected, but motor mechanics will also be affected. We also have the situation with Moneypoint. A number of workers will be displaced and will need to retrain. The scale of what needs to be done is enormous. Bord na Móna was a significant employer. It is possible to have that kind of scale again in terms of a green economy. It has potential to be involved and it is making moves in that direction. It needs to be encouraged to move into biomass, biogas and solar energy generation.

We need a national agency to train people for retrofitting because we do not have the construction workers to do it at the moment. We would prefer to have some sort of commission for a just transition; we do not have that. At least the Minister of State needs to tell us when the review group will be established. We need biomass supply chains. Bringing this stuff half way across the world defeats the purpose of reducing greenhouse gas emissions. We need to be growing biomass in Edenderry and throughout west Offaly to supply these plants.

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