Danny Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I am glad to get the opportunity to speak about this. My understanding of the words "just transition" is different from the Government's. As Deputy Nolan said, there are no alternatives, or very few, and we are now being threatened in here day after day. It is as if the Government is trying to muzzle us. I guarantee the Minister of State that while we are elected here we will not be muzzled or held back by anyone. We have a right to represent the people and I have a right to represent the people of Kerry.

I have no problem with electric cars when they are economical and practical, provide durability and can travel the distance and when the Government provides enough charging points and faster charging points. I have no problem with the Government wanting to stop us cutting turf, but it must provide the alternatives. People need to be let use turf to warm their homes, as they always have done. Maybe, in time, transition will come. We will give the next generation a chance. Europe said the other day that no more new petrol or diesel cars can be bought after 2035. That is bully work, and that is what the Government is doing now. That is how the Government is depicted in rural Ireland: bullies trying to bully us all in a hurry. On top of the exorbitant cost of fuel at present, the Government is taking in more tax, including carbon tax, VAT and excise duty. The Government is so greedy and cannot understand that the people on the roads are being driven into the ground because they cannot afford the cost of fuel at present. The Government will not do anything for them. It will not listen. If we say anything, we are criticised.

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