Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I will turn to the climate action plan, which is due to go to the Government on Tuesday. It will be published. I heard some Deputies say we could have debated the plan this week. I would have preferred to do that but we will have plenty of time. There will be time over the Christmas break for Deputies to be able to read what is quite a long document. I hope to have an extensive debate in the new year, which would be just as appropriate if not more so. It will give us time to consider and listen to some of the views of the Opposition.

The Climate Action and Low Carbon Development (Amendment) Act 2021 significantly strengthened the legally binding framework for climate governance in Ireland. It requires delivery of successful climate action plans and long-term climate strategies supported by a system of carbon budgeting and sector emissions ceilings. The introduction and adoption of these budgets and ceilings this year has set out a clear pathway for meeting our carbon budgets and Ireland's commitment to a 51% reduction in emissions by 2030. Those ceilings will be reflected in the next climate action plan which, as I said, is due to be published next week. It is the first action plan to be developed under the provisions of the 2021 Act. Therefore, the plan will reflect the specific requirements of that Act, to include policies, measures and actions for each sector to ensure compliance with our sectoral emissions ceilings and on the pathway to net zero emissions by not later than 2050.

I will point to what I see as some of the highlights of the plan while noting it still must be agreed by the Government and, therefore, remains provisional. It will show a significant scaling up of our ambition and in the delivery of new renewable powers. The war in Ukraine and the high price of fossil fuel gas at the moment is going to drive that, but the plan is going to set out a scale of delivery in that respect that is like nothing we have seen before. We will have to continue with, and double down on, the measures that promote energy efficiency to ensure we use such energy wisely. In transport, there is significant change away from just looking to improve the electric vehicle fleet towards reducing transport demand and shifting to public transport. In agriculture, the plan will promote significant diversification to new ways of earning income and getting work for farming communities, which will help to reduce emissions and move away from a reliance on dairy and beef as our main agricultural outputs. The plan also has applications in respect of the development of the circular economy, which is an industrial application issue. That is another area that will have responsibilities. Those are the core areas where the plan will set out new measures.

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