Jennifer Whitmore (Wicklow, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

I thank People Before Profit for tabling this motion. I am happy to say that the Social Democrats will be supporting it. It is a very timely and important issue to which many people are giving more consideration in the face of our ongoing issues regarding energy security, the national grid, the rising price of fuel and of course the climate emergency.

While reading a number of sources in advance of today's debate, I found myself thinking about the Irish adage, "If I was going there, I wouldn't start here." The best way to nationalise was never to have privatised in the first place. In the early decades of the State, enormous efforts were made to create nationally owned utilities which produced affordable and reliable energy. Much like when we are discussing the housing crisis in this House, we must lament that when we were a poor new republic emerging from years of war and rebellion, we had a better capacity to deliver public services such as housing and energy than we do today as a wealthy modern republic. Perhaps that was because in the absence of profitability in our economy, we decided to put the needs of poor people and our communities first. That is still needed today.

With the major push we need to make to renewable energy to ensure we preserve our environment, there is now an opportunity for a new decade of public infrastructure investment in fuel sources. Solar and wind energy are the only shows in town when it comes to moving away from our reliance on gas and coal. The companies that run them should be State owned and operating in the public interest. Privatisation has not been good for the consumer or the environment and it has become the hallmark of our approach to energy in Ireland. Privatisation has always been a vehicle for cost increases with no comparable increases in investment or in the quality of networks ensuring reliability.

Even some who claimed to be in favour of public ownership and the need to prioritise people before profit, have actually privatised our fuel networks while in government such as the Labour Party in the 2011 to 2016 Government. Although Labour Members would no doubt remind us that they only sold profitable parts of Bord Gáis and not the network, surely that is cold comfort to those who will be too afraid to turn on their gas cookers this winter for fear of a bill in the new year they cannot pay.

The Social Democrats believe it is important that the next phase of development for fuel and energy in Ireland is not only renewable but also democratic. We want to put power back in the hands of people when it comes to our energy supply and control. As with many others in the sector, we feel this can be done through community buy-in to the infrastructure and the output of wind and solar farms. The Social Democrats proposal for a nationwide roll-out of solar panels to homes is an example of this. This would enable people to generate, control and manage their own energy, to be resilient and to make their homes resilient. It would help with the grid, help with our energy security and indeed help with our climate commitments. We need to see that kind of approach from the Government.

We hear much discussion about the potential for wind energy in Ireland but it is only if it is done properly and done in the interests of our community. Community-owned and profitable wind farming is becoming a feature for many communities across the world. Close to home, in Scotland, one example is Allt Dearg Wind Farmers, established in 2009 by the neighbouring Ormsary and Stronachullin estates to develop the plentiful wind resource of the 477 m high Cruach a’ Phubuill hill above them. The site had previously been subject to an unsuccessful planning application for a much larger development by a big utility. Remote and sparsely populated rural Argyll is not historically a booming local economy. Harnessing wind resources by Allt Dearg Community Wind Farm for the socioeconomic benefit of local people was a rare opportunity to generate sustainable home-grown wealth which has helped to underpin vibrant and sustainable communities. The cost of the community buy-in by the Ardrishaig Community Trust to secure approximately a one 12th share, was derived from the proportionate share of the capital cost of construction, rather than the commercial market value of the developed project. We need to look at other countries that have done this successfully to see how we can put the power back into communities and not solely focus on what corporations can do because that is where we will get the best sustainability not just for the environment but also for our communities.

The decision to privatise Bord Gáis by a Fine Gael and Labour Government has had impacts for the future generation of wind power in Ireland because as was reported at the time, the Canadian Brookfield Renewable Partners acquired 17 wind farms in that deal. The enterprise value of the wind assets was valued at €700 million. The net income to the State from that part of the sale was €495 million. Seventy employees were transferred from Bord Gáis to Brookfield. We were already conscious of the need to move to renewables in 2014 but in that year, the Government let 17 wind farms and 70 skilled employees slip out of our hands into the private market in the name of paying down debt from banks in a financial crisis. How invaluable would that resource and those staff be to us now as we are grappling with an energy crisis? We need not just to move to renewable energy sources, but to fairly managed, community-enhancing networks, as happens in other countries. This is an incredibly important approach that we need to be taking on to ensure that power remains within our communities.

I absolutely agree with the People Before Profit motion on the establishment of a State construction company to directly retrofit all houses. I would add to that; I did not get an opportunity to table an amendment. We need to look at not just retrofitting but also installing solar panels. The quickest, most efficient and cheapest way to do this is if the State does it. The State needs to be a bulk purchaser of solar panels. It needs to go to companies in Europe and negotiate strong deals with them. It would cut the price of those solar panels by more than half. The State then needs to bring them back. It needs to actually hand it over to a local authority or some centralised agency that can do a roll out in housing estates. We need to see teams of people going around to estates and putting solar panels on every house in that estate. It needs to be done for free for people who cannot afford it. Indeed, I would argue that there is much greater value for the State in doing that and by giving it free to everyone in order that we actually get this up and running. I do not understand the Government's hesitancy in doing this.

There is a major push on retrofitting and I agree that we need to retrofit. However, retrofitting takes a long time and is very expensive. It will deal with the home-heating element, but homes use an inordinate amount of electricity. Some 40% or 50% of energy used in the home is electricity. The Government's stay-well-this-winter programme encourages people not to use dishwashers or tumble dryers and to reduce the thermostat temperature on their immersions. All that energy usage could be provided for if those homes had solar panels. I do not understand why the Government is refusing to take on the Social Democrats' proposal and roll out a State-wide solar installation programme that would cut costs for 40% of people's energy costs and secure our energy supply and help reduce emissions.

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