Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE)
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I move:

That leave be granted to introduce a Bill entitled an Act to ban advertising of fossil fuels and fossil fuelled vehicles, including commercial sponsorship, by corporate entities and to establish a Fossil Fuel Information Commission for the purposes of product and price comparisons by the public.

I am introducing this Bill today as a small step in combating the climate catastrophe which is unfolding around us. COP28, despite what some people want to claim, was an historic failure. There was no agreement to phase out fossil fuels, which is what is necessary. We need to start taking concrete steps towards ending the use and the extraction of fossil fuels now if we are to have any hope of avoiding 2°C of global heating and much more. This Bill is a contribution towards that. We know that fossils fuels, and the vehicles that use them, are the primary cause of global warming and a myriad of other environmental and health problems. Extreme weather events such as flooding, air pollution and the deaths and chronic illnesses caused by air pollution - things like asthma, COPD, heart and respiratory problems - are increasing. In this country, we have the highest rate of asthma in Europe and our car-dependent transport system is a big part of the cause of that. One in ten children in this country currently have asthma. One in five will suffer from it at some point during their childhood. Some 380,000 people have asthma right now and 890,000 will develop it during their lifetime.

The last time such a major public health threat was so clearly associated with a particular non-essential product was with tobacco.

Tobacco advertising and sponsorship were banned because of the clear link between smoking and illness, disease and death. It is time to do exactly the same with the advertising of fossil fuels, fossil fuel vehicles and flights. Transport currently accounts for 17% of Ireland's greenhouse gas emissions and the vast majority of that comes from private, fossil-fuelled cars. Fossil fuels in this Bill are defined as light oil, heavy oil, liquefied petroleum gas, vehicle gas, coal, peat or peat briquettes. Fossil-fuelled vehicles mean light motor vehicles, heavy motor vehicles, motorcycles and aircraft fuelled by fossil fuels and flights, which are a major contributor to global heating. This Bill only applies to corporate advertising, merchandising and sponsorship by companies and not, for example, the small advertisements taken out by individuals selling a second-hand car. There are also exceptions to allow for on-premises advertising and price display so petrol stations can display prices on their premises and airlines can display prices of flights on their own websites.

There is a provision to set up a fossil fuel information commission to enable consumers to compare prices and features of fossil fuels and fossil-fuelled vehicles for so long as they are legally available for sale. I hope that will not be for too long as we need to get to zero emissions many years before 2050. Unfortunately, the Government's climate action plans on transport and heating lack the radical, eco-socialist measures needed to get to zero emissions fast and justly. We need massive public investment in free and frequent public transport, shared mobility and active travel everywhere, and free retrofitting to passive house standards for all households that need it. The goal has to be to get away from the hellscape we have at present where advertising of the fossil fuels that are killing us and our planet is literally all around us.

Once you start to notice it, it is striking just how much car advertising there is: how many advertisements you see on TV are for cars; how many billboards are for car advertisements; and how much sponsorship of popular TV programmes, such as "The Late Late Show", is from car manufacturers. There is evidence this has a direct link to the lack of media coverage of climate change, a topic, for example, that "The Late Late Show" has barely covered in all its years of showcasing shiny new cars. Last year in Ireland the number of new fossil-fuelled cars increased by 10% to more than 99,000. It is true that sales of electric vehicles increased too, but four times as many fossil-fuelled cars as new electric cars were sold. The average car on Irish roads is nine years old. These new fossil-fuelled cars will be pumping out carbon emissions well into the 2030s. At that stage, we will have breached 1.5°C of heating and we will be probably well on our way to 2°C of heating. Advertising is a big factor. They would not be spending millions on advertising if it did not work. Just like the tobacco companies before them, they are spending millions on advertising to make billions in profits out of killing us. We need to act now to stop the continued production and sale of fossil fuels and fossil-fuelled vehicles. Stopping advertising is one way to go in that direction.

Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent)
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Is the Bill opposed?

Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael)
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No.

Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent)
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Since this is a Private Members' Bill, Second Stage must, under Standing Orders, be taken in Private Members' time.

Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE)
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I move: "That the Bill be taken in Private Members' time."