Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Gabhaim buíochas leis an gCeann Comhairle. Cuirim fáilte roimh an deis labhartha ar an ábhar fíorthábhachtach seo anocht sa Dáil agus ar an bpíosa reachtaíochta tábhachtach atá os ár gcomhair. Beidh tionchar mór aige ar obair an Rialtais agus ar an ngeilleagar fosta, ar chaighdeán saoil ár saoránach agus ar an todhchaí atá bunaithe ar charbón íseal. Ní cóir go mbeadh gníomhartha ar son na haeráide mar bhagairt d'aon duine. Is teachtaireacht iontach láidir a chaithfimid a phlé, go háirithe leo siúd nach gcreideann go bhfuil fadhb ann ó thaobh na haeráide. Is a mhalairt ba chóir a bheith i gceist. Ba chóir go mbeadh sé ina chosán i dtreo poist úra le pá maith in earnáil luachmhar na todhchaí. Ba chóir go ndéanfadh sé cinnte de nach bhfuil aon duine fágtha ar gcúl. Níl mórán sa reachtaíocht seo a bhaineann le haistriú atá ceart ná cothrom agus ar an drochuair cífimid fiú amháin an tseachtain seo go bhfuil daoine fágtha ar gcúl agus tá an Rialtas seo ag brú cánacha níos airde ar shaoránaigh na tíre seo ó thaobh carbóin de.

The record of the three parties in government during the financial crisis and its aftermath would do little to inspire confidence in their willingness to safeguard the rights of the most vulnerable as we deal with this transition. This has already been evidenced in the attitude towards carbon tax. People right across the State have felt the burden of the policy introduced last year to increase carbon tax. The ESRI and Department itself said this policy was regressive and would affect rural dwellers and, worse, those on low incomes and households with single parents. All the increase in carbon tax will do, unfortunately, is make households poorer when heating their homes over the coming months because the alternatives do not exist. If they do, they are not readily available or affordable to the individuals concerned.

When we talk about just transition, there needs to be more than words; it has to mean something. With annual increases to 2030 now hardwired into tax legislation, the burden will increase continually. As I said when the carbon tax was introduced, it is striking that the Government did not match it with annual increases in welfare payments through the Social Welfare Consolidation Act to prevent vulnerable citizens from bearing the brunt of its regressive impacts, which are well known and documented.

The legislation demands change from the Government. Change is needed. Despite the high rhetoric of Fine Gael, its actions and policies have ensured that the State has missed its target for reducing greenhouse gas emissions year after year. Its willingness to subsidise the activities of big industry undermines not only homeownership but also environmental protection. Fine Gael provided €2.4 billion in subsidies to the fossil fuel industry in 2019. This was higher than in the previous year. As always, actions speak louder than words or targets written in any legislation.

My principal concern regarding this legislation is whether its objectives can be achieved. The Bill will see the introduction of five-year carbon budgets, with Ministers and Departments responsible for achieving legally binding targets. There will be three carbon budgets, covering the periods 2021 to 2025, 2026 to 2030, and 2031 to 2035, with a 51% reduction in emissions to be reached by 2030. My concern relates to what will be achieved during the first carbon budget. Achieving these targets will require massive investment the likes of which we have never seen before. I do not believe that this Government is up for the type of investment required. While we are legislating for carbon targets here, there is no similar legislation for targets concerning the mental health or welfare of the population or, indeed, the provision of health services and housing. What we do not need to see as a result of the lack of investment by the Government is Departments being forced to make decisions that will put those aims on the back-burner.

The plan is for an annual increase in expenditure, as we see in the stability programme update, of 3.5% to 2025, reaching a broadly balanced budget. That is roughly what the Government published at the beginning of 2020 before the pandemic, programme for Government and this Bill. In the words of the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council, it really just allows us to stand still. It deals with inflation, wage increases and demographics but does not take into account any other commitments. Therefore, the contradictions between the position of the Department of Finance and this legislation will become clear in upcoming budgets. I advise the Green Party to measure the significance of this legislation against those contradictions. To achieve the targets in this legislation will require a new approach and significant investment. For that reason, without more transparency from the Department of Finance on the impacts of this legislation on budget expenditure, taxation and deficits, I believe we are blind in this debate. The Bill's objectives, though well intentioned, are in doubt.

See this speech in context