Darren O'Rourke (Meath East, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 1:

To insert the following after “resources off our coast;”: “— involve the fishing industry at the pre-planning stage of any proposed offshore energy installations and ensure that support measures are put in place where necessary to protect the livelihoods of fishermen and the sustainability of the industry;”

I thank the Regional Group for bringing forward the motion. Sinn Féin's amendment complements the motion and recognises the need to involve fishing communities in the development of offshore wind. I hope the amendment will be accepted.

Ireland has one of the best offshore renewable energy resources in the world, with a sea area approximately seven times the size of our landmass and a long-term potential for greater than 70 GW of ocean energy opportunity within 100 km of the Irish coastline. It is vital that this valuable natural resource is developed for the benefit of both our climate and our citizens. The Government must realise the potential of offshore wind and act on it in the interests of the people of Ireland, but it looks set to do neither. We hear from those at the coalface of this sector about the maritime planning Bill, delayed by a year; the marine area regulatory authority, delayed by at least a year; licences for surveys, impossible to get; interested parties looking elsewhere and going elsewhere; and a hydrogen strategy of which people ask, "What is that?" As for preparations at our ports, the Government says it is thinking about developing a plan and that it might get EU money. The Government's failure to deliver on its objectives today to meet its own targets is building in failures for the future, and future governments will be burdened by the Minister's incompetence. Those in the sector say we have a very limited window in which to get our house in order. Those with a keener eye say that the 5 GW offshore target for 2030 is already missed and that the Minister knows it. He dithers on floating offshore, he has failed to put in place the legislation and regulatory framework and, as a result, he denies the people of Ireland, particularly our fishing and coastal communities, the opportunity to benefit and to make the transition. Jobs are already being lost to England and elsewhere, we are told, and the truth is that the Minister knows nothing about a just transition. He is failing to realise this potential in the interests of the Irish people.

The people do not trust Fianna Fáil or Fine Gael to deliver a good deal for the Irish people when it comes to our natural resources or anything else, for that matter. They will remember the Corrib, where the people got the scraps from the table. They are living with the national children's hospital and the details of the national broadband plan. A deal prepared by the same climate and communications Department that had expected to deliver for the Irish people on offshore wind is being laid bare in a day-by-day exposé in The Currencyonline, past, present and future.

One way in which the Government can ensure that our offshore potential is developed for the public good is for the State to lead from the front when it comes to investment and development in renewable energy and to be ambitious, bold and visionary on behalf of the Irish people. Semi-state companies such as the ESB, Bord na Móna and others should be provided with the resources to develop and retain ownership of offshore wind projects and not just be bit-part players but be ambitious, bold and visionary. It is not a lot to ask but it seems to be too much to expect from Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and the Greens.

There is a role for the private sector, for sure, but it is essential that the State does not become as reliant on private renewable energy companies for our future energy needs as we are currently reliant on private fossil fuel companies. We should not switch from one master to another. With offshore wind we have the opportunity for transformational social and economic change in our regions, coastal communities and urban and rural settings, but it has to be harnessed and managed. As of today, and as of the past 20 years, Irish governments are failing. The Minister should not take my word or Sinn Féin's word for it. He should look at the report of the Climate Change Advisory Council, CCAC, published just today. Marie Donnelly was on the radio this morning speaking about the implementation gap. It is there in lights. As for meeting targets, we are significantly off track, in the CCAC's words. Marie Donnelly was asked, if we do not change how we do things, whether we have a snowball's chance in hell of meeting our 2030 targets. She had a one-word answer: "No". I ask the Minister to heed this warning and to act. The CCAC report spelled out that this Government and previous governments have been all talk and no action. We need to deliver on the piece of this jigsaw of which the State is in control. There is huge opportunity for local communities, the Irish economy and the Irish people but it needs to be realised. I call on the Minister and his Government to heed the warnings.

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