Results 781-800 of 4,037 for speaker:Jennifer Whitmore
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)
Jennifer Whitmore: Great. One of the actions in the climate action plan is to develop a proposal for a cow reduction voluntary exit scheme. I raised this at the last meeting and there was no information on it available. The timeline for that is quarter 4 of 2023, so will the Minister publish that this month?
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)
Jennifer Whitmore: I am conscious of my time. The Minister says it is under consideration. It is in the climate action plan to develop a proposal for a cow reduction scheme, and he has been in the media saying he was looking at it. Has that started? Is it planned to start? He is meant to publish it this month.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)
Jennifer Whitmore: I wish to come back to this because we are here to discuss the climate action plan and it is a very defined target that this would be developed and published now. When does the Minister anticipate that it will be published, or is he now at the point where he does not think he will go further with the target?
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)
Jennifer Whitmore: I understand that, and I do not mean to be rude, but this is a key target in the climate action plan, and we are here to discuss the climate action plan. Obviously, the Minister will not meet that target this year.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)
Jennifer Whitmore: When will the Minister publish that plan, or will he revoke it or not publish it?
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)
Jennifer Whitmore: It appears to me that this is not on the Minister's agenda at the moment.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)
Jennifer Whitmore: Is the Minister talking about export food production or food production for Ireland? We export the majority of our dairy, I imagine.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)
Jennifer Whitmore: Is the Minister talking about exports then, that is, the impact this would have on exports, as opposed to food within Ireland?
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)
Jennifer Whitmore: This was incorporated as one of the actions in the climate action plan. It was one of the key considerations as to how to reduce emissions within the sector. In the absence of the Minister's progressing this, what will he replace it with to reduce emissions?
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)
Jennifer Whitmore: We just do not have time to rely on research that is five or ten years away.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)
Jennifer Whitmore: May I just make one statement? I have a real fear that when it comes to this issue and dealing with emissions within the sector, the Minister is putting his head in the sand in the same way he put his head in the sand when it came to the derogations. That did no one any good because now we have thousands of farmers who thought that things would change for them and that they would be able to...
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)
Jennifer Whitmore: I do not think the country is depending on Ireland for that.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)
Jennifer Whitmore: I do not know the ins and outs of the Origin Green programme but is there not a requirement for producers to be compliant with all the standards? Is it not automatic that if a producer is deemed to be non-compliant with any environmental regulation, that producer will be struck off?
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)
Jennifer Whitmore: That would be helpful. Is the Minister in agreement that there should be a strike-off if a producer is not in compliance with the environmental regulations, which would mean that producer can no longer participate in the scheme?
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)
Jennifer Whitmore: I thank the Minister.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)
Jennifer Whitmore: I want to bring it back to basics a little bit. I appreciate the Minister is talking about problems with delivering on climate action. I understand there are a number of significant challenges in that regard. I also do not want to undermine the work that has been done and the fact there has been progress in some areas. I want to bring it back to the Climate Action Plan 2023, however,...
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)
Jennifer Whitmore: Am I correct in saying then, even if that was incorporated, the EPA analysis said it will still only meet 42% of the 51%?
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)
Jennifer Whitmore: The science is variable and very complex, and we still have a target of 51%. That target is not going to change regardless of the complexity of achieving it. If the climate action plan cannot put a percentage reduction or policies in place to represent a percentage of reduction in emissions to 2030 for certain sectors, is it not the case that the remainder of the policy should be making up...
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)
Jennifer Whitmore: That is a considerable amount of flexibility though, if we are saying that our policies will meet 29% when we have to meet 51% That is not flexibility.