Jennifer Whitmore (Wicklow, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

As the Minister knows, I have worked in the environmental sector for 20 years. Some 15 years ago, I worked in New South Wales in the Greenhouse Office and had these sorts of discussions. To be honest, in my first year as a Teachta Dála in Ireland, when I realised that dealing with, debating and trying to make the climate Bill stronger would be one of my first actions, I was relieved. This is a discussion we should have had many years ago in Ireland and we need to take these actions urgently. We need to ensure that we pass on to future generations a much stronger Ireland than we are now. I was, therefore, really looking forward to standing here today and saying "Well done" for the work the Minister has put in, and that this Bill is as strong, ambitious and future-proofed as we need it to be. Unfortunately, I am not in a position to do that at this point. That is hugely disappointing.

As recently as earlier today, the Minister spoke about how this is a collaborative Bill. I acknowledge that in some regards the Minister has taken advice on board, particularly with regard to the National Oil Reserves Agency, NORA, amendments. For the most part, however, this has not been a collaborative Bill. There has been a major rush to get it through the Dáil. There was a rush on the committee to not engage in pre-legislative scrutiny of the Bill. The committee pushed back at that. We had pre-legislative scrutiny and it gave rise to a very worthwhile discussion.

We put forward a huge number of amendments, which the Government claimed it took on board. A review of those amendments shows that it did take them on board. In some respects, it may have taken them on board in part and taken a very veneered and light-touch approach to the suggestions and recommendations of the Joint Committee on Climate Action. Then we had the Committee Stage debate last week. A total of 231 amendments were put forward by the Opposition. Unfortunately, pretty much at the start of that debate, the Minister indicated that he would not be taking any of them on board.

This needs to be a flagship Bill for the country and not just for the Green Party. The Green Party and the Government need to listen to other people's voices in the context of this Bill because they do not have all the answers when it comes to the environment. They need to listen to others. I really wish that the Minister had listened to the recommendations that were put to him by means of those Committee Stage amendments.

As a previous speaker indicated, there is a theme running through this. I never thought we would see the Opposition trying to encourage and support the Green Party and the Government to make an environmental Bill stronger and they are turning down that encouragement and support. I did not think we would see that.

One of the key gaps in this Bill relates to just transition. All the Opposition Deputies raised this as an issue. It is really disappointing that the Minister has not grasped the opportunity and made the Bill stronger when it comes to how we will meet our targets. We all agree that those targets must be met. We need to do so. What we need in that Bill, however, is some direction as to how we will meet them and who we will prioritise, support and look after.

My fear at this stage is that, as per what is normal and has traditionally happened in this country, the Government will support the corporations and big players, and individuals will be left carrying the can. However, individuals cannot do that in this instance. They cannot make up for all the emissions produced by the big players. One of the issues I raised on Committee Stage last week was that we are debating how we can set the structure in place to meet emissions targets while, at the same time, data centres are getting approvals for emissions of the same volume as those produced by County Kilkenny. How is that possible and how is it allowed to go on unhindered, with no policy direction or discussion?

There is a free-for-all happening while we are talking about how different communities are going to have to roll back on their emissions. We cannot allow this type of unfairness in the system. That is why the just transition aspect, including a definition and principles, is incredibly important to include in the Bill. The Minister said last week it is too difficult to include such provisions in legislation and it is not possible or feasible to do so. In fact, it has been done in Scotland and New Zealand and I do not see why we cannot do the same. We must not have a Bill that leaves generations, communities or workers behind. We need a very broad approach and there are huge opportunities in this country if we do it right. We must make sure we put our communities at the forefront of how we achieve our emissions targets.

When I spoke on this issue last week, the Minister said it would require separate and specific legislation to include the provisions I was proposing. When will that happen? It could take years for something like that to get through. In the meantime, the climate actions are being rolled out. A just transition must not be a reactive transition. It has to be planned and we must take a very deliberate look at the needs of each of our communities, regions and industries. We must identify what the barriers and risks are and then identify the policy drivers we can use to support communities and sectors. That is absolutely possible and feasible to do. I guarantee that if we do this properly, we will leave Ireland a much stronger country, with much stronger communities that are environmentally sound.

If the Minister does not take that approach, he risks dividing the country and setting people against each other, including farmers, people who drive cars or use other forms of transport and people in the energy sector. The provisions in this Bill must not leave us with a divided country as a result. I ask that the Minister look at the just transition principles and consider what kind of legacy he wants from this legislation. I acknowledge that he has put huge effort into it and his entire career has been working towards this point in time. I am asking that he make the provisions as strong as they possibly can be. We will work with him to do that.

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