Results 441-460 of 3,579 for speaker:Jennifer Whitmore

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Citizens' Assembly Report on Biodiversity Loss: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Nov 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: This is a question for the EPA. I note that compliance and enforcement is a key part of what it is saying we need to improve. If you look up Uisce Éireann and the fines that have been applied, we are talking about €900, €2,000 or €7,000. For a €1.5 billion organisation that seems absolutely paltry. That is not going to encourage it at all. That fine will...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Citizens' Assembly Report on Biodiversity Loss: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Nov 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: I wish to address the Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine officials first. The derogation was a topic of discussion this morning with the EPA. I am glad to hear the Department officials are setting expectations with the farmers and setting down what is required and what will be required of them going forward, and providing the supports to do that. Regarding the recent derogation and...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Citizens' Assembly Report on Biodiversity Loss: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Nov 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: I know the Department is also working on a voluntary reduction scheme in the dairy sector. It is exploring this and doing a scoping exercise. There would be dual benefit with regard to the impact of nitrates on emissions and on biodiversity. Where is the Department with the scoping exercise for a voluntary scheme for the dairy sector?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Citizens' Assembly Report on Biodiversity Loss: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Nov 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: It was reported that the Minister, Deputy McConalogue, said the option of a voluntary dairy reduction scheme was being explored by the Department. Is the Department exploring this?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Citizens' Assembly Report on Biodiversity Loss: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Nov 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: Would Mr. Callanan be able to get this information?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Citizens' Assembly Report on Biodiversity Loss: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Nov 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: Has the Department considered septic tanks and Uisce Éireann?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Citizens' Assembly Report on Biodiversity Loss: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Nov 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: The grant scheme will apply for people to get onto-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Citizens' Assembly Report on Biodiversity Loss: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Nov 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: Does Mr. Towey know when this will be in place? Will it be introduced with the current-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Citizens' Assembly Report on Biodiversity Loss: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Nov 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: I thank Mr. Towey.

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (26 Oct 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: Approximately 4,500 children are waiting for their first appointment with child and adolescent mental health services, CAMHS, including hundreds in my constituency of Wicklow. Thousands of children are struggling every day with anxiety and with going to school. They are self-harming, have suicidal ideation and are struggling with eating disorders. Thousands of parents have to sit and watch...

An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (24 Oct 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: Today is international day against climate change, an initiative set up by the UN to create awareness of the threat of global warming. It is an issue that people in Midleton and places like Waterford need no reminder of; they are all too aware of the threat of global warming. Climate change is here. We do not have much discussion in the Chamber about adaptation and how we will actually...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Citizens Assembly Report on Biodiversity Loss: Discussion (Resumed) (24 Oct 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: I will pick up on some of Deputy Murphy’s questions. To clarify, the witnesses are not proposing biodiversity offsets.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Citizens Assembly Report on Biodiversity Loss: Discussion (Resumed) (24 Oct 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: Okay.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Citizens Assembly Report on Biodiversity Loss: Discussion (Resumed) (24 Oct 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: I would be very concerned if there was even a potential to go down that road. Just look at Australia where I think a developer had a $600 fee to pay to destroy a koala habitat under the offset programme that was set up by the New South Wales government. That is something that we would not want to endorse or in any way go in that direction.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Citizens Assembly Report on Biodiversity Loss: Discussion (Resumed) (24 Oct 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: Any of these measures would also have to be supported in parallel by really strict regulations on what can happen. Take, say, a woodland on a developer's site. That would have to be protected for being there, essentially.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Citizens Assembly Report on Biodiversity Loss: Discussion (Resumed) (24 Oct 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: Absolutely.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Citizens Assembly Report on Biodiversity Loss: Discussion (Resumed) (24 Oct 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: Okay. On the current system, our budgets and how we budget, sometimes a certain amount of money might be set aside for particular programmes that are valuable and for positive things to happen but we are not seeing the system change across the entire budgetary spectrum to really effect the shift we need to see. Is that a concern about our budget that we do not have a cohesiveness across...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Citizens Assembly Report on Biodiversity Loss: Discussion (Resumed) (24 Oct 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: I thank the witnesses.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Citizens Assembly Report on Biodiversity Loss: Discussion (Resumed) (24 Oct 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: I apologise if I am asking the same questions but in a slightly different way. I am just trying to get my head around this. On fiscal policy and environmental taxation, the Department says there is a suite of environmentally progressive elements to the taxation regime. Did Mr. Owens say earlier that, to date, biodiversity has not been assessed or incorporated into that progressive assessment?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Citizens Assembly Report on Biodiversity Loss: Discussion (Resumed) (24 Oct 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: One of the examples given references the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 and its relationship to the occupation of woodland. Are there any requirements for this woodland to be of a certain type or standard to ensure it is positive for biodiversity as opposed to, for example, a Sitka spruce plantation? Is there differentiation within the tax scheme?