Ossian Smyth (Dún Laoghaire, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I move:

That Dáil Éireann shall approve the carbon budgets, copies of which were laid before Dáil Éireann on 24th February, 2022, pursuant to Section 6B(7) of the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Acts 2015 to 2021 regarding the approval of the carbon budget.

I thank the Ceann Comhairle for inviting me to discuss the proposed carbon budget programme, which, following a lengthy consultation and review process, received approval from the Cabinet in February and which is now before the Houses of the Oireachtas for final approval.

As part of the consultation and review process, the Joint Committee on Environment and Climate Action undertook an extensive review of the carbon budget proposals. I greatly appreciate the work undertaken by members of the committee to examine the proposals and engage with numerous stakeholders and experts in order to fully interrogate the carbon budgets, and, more broadly, seek political consensus in support of a robust climate action. I am grateful for the committee's recommendation to adopt the proposed carbon budgets and appreciate the other recommendations delivered in its report, particularly with regard to monitoring our progress, ensuring a just transition, identifying opportunities to enhance our ambition and the need for effective citizen and stakeholder engagement.

The need for swift, robust climate action is critical. Last year, at COP26 in Glasgow, we witnessed the powerful testimonies of many international leaders from climate-vulnerable nations who painted a stark picture of the impact climate change is already having on their nations and communities. The climate budget programme will support Ireland to deliver against its domestic, EU and international climate action obligations.

The year 2021 saw a step change in our approach to climate action with the signing into law of the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development (Amendment) Act 2021 and the publication of the national development plan, NDP, and Climate Action Plan 2021: Securing Our Future. The introduction of our carbon budget programme will help us to build on the momentum from last year.

The Climate Action and Low Carbon Development (Amendment) Act 2021 establishes our climate objectives in law and will underpin national climate action in the medium- and long-term. Under the Act, the Climate Change Advisory Council, CCAC, submitted its first carbon budget programme in October 2021. The programme submitted by the CCAC establishes a pathway to achieving our legally binding climate objectives. It will deliver on our commitment to a 51% reduction in our carbon emissions by 2030 and set us on the way to net zero by 2050.

Last December, the Minister for the Environment, Climate Change and Communications, Deputy Eamon Ryan, caused a copy of this proposed carbon budget programme to be laid before both Houses of the Oireachtas. Dáil Éireann then referred the carbon budget programme to the joint Oireachtas committee for its consideration. On 7 February, the committee published its report and recommended that the proposed budgets be adopted by both Houses of the Oireachtas. Following consideration of the public consultation, the recommendations of the joint committee's report and input from my Government colleagues, the Minister took the proposed carbon budget programme to Government on 22 February and received Cabinet approval.

The motion being considered today on the Government's proposed carbon budgets taking effect is the final step in the adoption of the carbon budgets but it is only the beginning of the implementation process. The motion under consideration represents a significant milestone on this journey. Should the motion be approved by both Houses of the Oireachtas, the carbon budgets will then come into effect and set out an emissions framework for the country that will support our overall climate objective.

Once these overall, economy-wide carbon budgets are adopted and have come into effect, the Minister and his Department will begin the process of preparing the sectoral emissions ceilings. These ceilings will determine how each sector of the economy will contribute to the achievement of the carbon budgets. It is my intention that the sectoral emissions ceilings will be presented to Government for approval by the end of June. Preparation of the emissions ceilings will include extensive consultation with all Ministers and they will be informed by new and existing analysis undertaken by members of the climate action modelling group. As well as this, additional external technical support will be drawn upon.

The work undertaken as part of the consultation and review process for the carbon budgets, including the joint committee's report, will also inform and support the preparation and development of the sectoral emissions ceilings. Once the ceilings have been prepared and approved by the Cabinet, they and the carbon budgets will be reflected in the next climate action plan. This will replace the indicative ranges of emission reductions for each sector that are in the climate action plan that was published in 2021. The process to deliver the next update climate action plan will include further consultation with other Ministers, the public and various experts and stakeholders.

It is crucial that while we prepare our carbon budgets and sectoral emissions ceilings, delivery of climate action in Ireland continue apace. The Climate Action Plan 2021, which the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications launched on 4 November alongside the Taoiseach and the Tánaiste, provides a detailed roadmap for meeting our climate ambition under the climate Act. The Government has also published an accompanying annexe of actions to support the delivery of the plan. The annexe sets out the detailed actions and measures, with timelines included, that are required to drive delivery and ensure our emissions will reduce. The annexe also identifies the key Departments, State bodies and other stakeholders that will oversee and implement these actions. The 2021 plan sets out indicative ranges of emissions reduction for each sector of the economy and, following the legal adoption of carbon budgets and sectoral emissions ceilings, these ranges will be finalised and reflected in this year's climate action plan. The Government will support the changes through major public investment announced recently in the €165 billion national development plan, NDP. This will include increased funding for retrofitting homes, building new public transport, reskilling workers and supporting a just transition.

While the Climate Action Plan 2021 builds on the ambitious targets of the 2019 plan, it also represents a significant step-up in ambition and implementation. I will highlight a number of the most significant measures included in the plan. The plan commits to an increase in the proportion of renewable electricity to 80% by 2030, including an increased target of up to 5 GW of offshore wind energy. Second, it commits to a significant reduction in transport emissions by 2030. Measures will include enabling 500,000 additional walking, cycling and public transport journeys per day by 2030 and supporting the take-up of electric vehicles, EVs, to reach almost 1 million by 2030. Third, it commits to the implementation of a new national retrofit plan, intended to increase supply capacity and make retrofitting more affordable. Fourth, it commits our enterprise sector to seeing a faster uptake of carbon-neutral heating, increased electrification of high-temperature heating and the phasing-out of high global warming-potential F-gases. Lastly, it commits to reducing emissions associated with agriculture, which will be central to achieving our climate ambition. The plan provides a pathway to reducing emissions while supporting world-class food producing through an innovation- and science-based approach. There will be a reduction in the use of chemical nitrogen and a more targeted use of fertiliser while maintaining our position as a global leader in grass growth through multispecies swards. We will reduce emissions from land use and make a move towards being an overall store of carbon, which will involve further bog rehabilitation, increased afforestation and the re-wetting of peat organic soils. A new forestry programme will be prepared for launch in 2023.

The plan places a just transition at its core. It sets out four principles that will guide our policymaking and the implementation of our policy over the coming years to ensure we can effectively monitor and manage our transition and that our responses will remain flexible in order that we can respond to future transition challenges and target the areas in need of support. Each Minister, as well as the Government as a whole, will be expected to consider these principles as we develop and implement our climate policies. We have committed in the plan to establishing a just transition commission, which will make periodic recommendations to the Government, building on research, engagement through the national dialogue on climate action and the annual review from the Climate Change Advisory Council, CCAC, on how Government policy can further the just transition. In delivering this ambitious climate action plan and its future iterations, we must ensure we will bring people with us and that the transition is fair. The national dialogue on climate action, launched in March 2021, will facilitate public engagement, participation, community action, networking and capacity-building activities on climate action, giving everyone in society the opportunity to play his or her part. Last November, the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications also announced €60 million in funding from the climate action fund for community climate action projects to support and empower communities to shape and build low-carbon, sustainable communities in a coherent way.

As I mentioned, the testimony presented at COP26 in Glasgow laid out the risks and challenges climate change presents. The science is clear and definitive on the need for urgent action. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, IPCC, report, Climate Change 2021 - The Physical Science Basis, establishes incontrovertibly that the negative effects of climate change are being experienced globally and will continue to increase exponentially, in both magnitude and volatility, along with global temperatures. We have made some progress towards this goal from Glasgow. Ireland had a significant presence and extensive engagement at COP26 on a number of key areas, which will feed in to global decarbonisation efforts. The Glasgow climate pact, the overarching agreement, keeps alive the ambition of restricting the global temperature rise of 1.5°C. It strikes a balance between increasing climate ambition, delivering on calls for increased climate finance and adaptation supports and leading the way for a new dialogue on the issue of loss and damage, critical to supporting climate justice for those most exposed to climate change.

The carbon budget programme provides Ireland with a strong and deliverable framework for meeting our national climate objectives and our international obligations to climate action and emissions reductions. It will require considerable co-operation and co-ordination to ensure we can achieve these budgets. The process undertaken to consider these proposed budgets highlights how to build political consensus towards robust and impactful action against climate change. It will take similar levels of engagement to achieve these budgets. The transition to a carbon-neutral economy will provide significant opportunities to foster innovation, create jobs and grow businesses in areas such as offshore wind, cutting-edge sustainable agriculture and low-carbon construction. While we all must act together towards our climate objective, I recognise the costs of climate action will be more acutely felt by some. As a Government, we are committed to protecting those most vulnerable and ensuring a just transition to a low carbon economy.

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