James Bannon (Fine Gael)

I second the motion introduced by the Independent group. I have spoken on this issue previously and raised it on many occasions in this House and in other forums on which I serve. I commend the Independent group on introducing this motion.

I also commend the initiative taken by Fingal County Council on energy and insulation standards, which will require new houses to be 60% more energy efficient than the existing minimum standards and which will cope with what is essentially a Dublin-based problem, the scourge of hollow brick built homes. In taking the bull by the horns, Fingal County Council is highlighting the gross inaction by the Departments of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government and Communications, Marine and Natural Resources, which have failed dismally to tackle the problem of poor energy efficiency and ignored our commitment under the Kyoto Protocol.

Another example of efficient initiatives was put in place by Longford County Council which has installed an energy efficient heating system in 40 existing houses in St. Matthew's Park, Ballymahon. This project was featured and highlighted on a recent RTE programme presented by Mr. Duncan Stewart. With mounting environmental concerns over energy use, conservation is more important than even. The concept of green buildings constitutes a way to dramatically conserve energy and to contribute to a healthy internal and external environment in various ways.

Ireland has many reasons to improve energy efficiency in houses. Finite fuel reserves and global resources are under pressure, as demonstrated by the Ukrainian-Russian gas supply dispute and Ireland currently has a very high energy dependency, of some 88%, compared with other EU member states, as shown in the breakdown of figures for 1990 to 1998. For many, the debate comes down to cost — energy efficient buildings are simply cheaper to run.

Some 40% of all energy used in Europe goes into building; thus, almost half of the energy consumed in Europe is used in building for the basic requirements of light, heat and power. Most people's idea of fuel consumption is that large industrial plants consume vast amounts of energy and they find it difficult to realise that they also use energy and that inefficiencies in energy use are to be found in their own homes. In the United States, building accounts for 37% of all energy use and 68% of all electricity use and the building industry causes six times more damage than cars in terms of energy consumption and carbon dioxide emissions.

In 2005, our greenhouse gas emissions levels were 25% above the 1990 level and if we do not reduce such emissions by 2012, the State faces a €5 billion EU fine. Our national target under the Kyoto Protocol is to be 13% above the 1990 levels, or just over 63 million tonnes a year. This figure becomes legally binding between 2008 and 2012.

By 2004, the rise was already at 23.1% and it is estimated that Ireland will overshoot the Kyoto target by more than 7 million tonnes per year by 2008. The Government is required to cap the emissions that industry is allowed to produce. Arising from this, an emissions trading system has been created, allowing companies that have exceeded their individual caps to buy credits from companies and countries which have achieved, or exceeded, their target reductions. In an attempt to avoid fines caused by its own lack of action on the Kyoto targets, the Government is to buy 3.7 million tonnes of credits per year which will cost between €180 million and more than €1 billion, depending on the price of carbon credits during the period.

In Ireland, 30% of all CO2 emissions emanates from the heating of buildings. In fact, 50% of all CO2 emissions is generated by the construction and heating of buildings. The construction industry is one of the largest contributors to CO2 emissions.

Ireland is suffering from the lack of a coherent national energy policy, for which one can point the finger at the incompetence of the Departments of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government and Communications, Marine and Natural Resources. The national development plan from 1999 to 2000 set aside a mere €145 million for energy infrastructure. Both Fingal and Wicklow county councils are running pilot projects in which new houses must be 60% more energy efficient than the existing minimum standards. Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council also has plans to introduce a similar scheme.

From January next, every home built in Ireland will have an energy rating, from A1 to G3, similar to that found on refrigerators and washing machines. This will extend to all houses sold or rented from January 2009. Pending the introduction of the regulations, Sustainable Energy Ireland has proposed to give all new houses a B rating. This is farcical, to put it mildly. Ratings will have to be revised within a short period of time if houses constructed to current regulations receive a B rating, which is not a true indicator of their real energy efficiency. As those living in new homes know, they are incredibly expensive to heat and extremely wasteful of energy.

In 1998 the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government engaged in a cover-up with regard to the revision of the building regulations on the grounds that such a revision would require a change in building-standard insulation, which would make it difficult for hollow-block constructions, used widely in this country, to survive. New regulations were not introduced until 2003, with an exemption for all planning applications lodged before 31 December 2003. This meant that up until the end of 2005, tens of thousands of new homes were built to 1997 regulation standards. The Government put the interests of the building industry ahead of the public interest. Once again, the hard-pressed buyer was hit by this uncaring Government. The interference of the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government in the marketplace, to the benefit of the building industry, has inflicted an enormous cost on home owners and the environment.

Fine Gael is committed to increasing the funding available to Energy Action and all of those similarly engaged in energy efficiency initiatives with the specific target of bringing existing housing stocks up to the insulation standards of newly built homes. It is also committed to extending grant aid to householders so those who wish to convert existing home heating technologies to renewable energy can do so.