Martin Conway (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister and thank him for and commend him on the very hard work he has done in the 12 months since the Government took office. It is fitting that on the first anniversary of the formation of the Government, we are introducing this groundbreaking legislation, the Climate Action and Low Carbon (Amendment) Bill. As has been said, this is the emergency that existed pre Covid and it is the emergency that will exist post Covid. We showed how we could handle the Covid emergency, so let us do the same with this emergency.Although we are a small country, and some might say we are an outlier, with a population of 5 million, there is absolutely no reason we cannot be world class, why we cannot set the standard, why we cannot lead the way and why we cannot be an example to the rest of the world. That is what we need to achieve. To achieve that we must bring all the stakeholders with us because the green agenda is now mainstream and can only work when it does become mainstream. "Mainstream" means we are bringing a majority of the people with us and that we have buy-in from a majority of the people. We are in a situation where all the major political parties in this country recognise the need for this, along with the Minister's own party which has absolutely led the way. It is a cornerstone of the programme for Government, a cornerstone of the two other parties in coalition with the Minister's party and to be fair to the Opposition, it is a cornerstone of its commitment to the people of Ireland, to our climate and to our world environment. We may differ in some ways on how we achieve it but we certainly all have a common goal.

When I talk of bringing stakeholders with us I mean all stakeholders. Many stakeholders are already with us; the building industry and others are certainly doing their bit but we must also bring the farming community because it is considered the main cause of carbon. That is what we are told, rightly or wrongly. However, the farming community is very much dedicated to reducing carbon. It has proven this. Farmers in my county have done so, as the Minister knows well. I refer to the BurrenLIFE project in the Burren. It is farming for conservation, where the farmers are ambassadors for the landscape and the environment. It has won international and European awards. It was done by Dr. Brendan Dunford, working with people and engaging with them, not telling them what to do but agreeing what to do in collaboration with people. That is a model that can be emulated all over Ireland and throughout the world. It is one area I would like the Minister to comment on in his summation. The IFA is very keen to work with him on this Bill and I know the Minister agrees with the principle of a collaborative approach. I hope that approach will be reflected as this Bill moves through the Houses.

I travelled up from Ennis this morning by train. It is nice to see more people on the trains now. The Minister and I share a common commitment to train travel. I have spoken to him before about a possible link between Ennis and Shannon, and Limerick and Shannon. It is something that would cost a bit of money but were it to be delivered it would mean that Shannon absolutely has the commitment of Government by virtue of rail infrastructure being installed to connect it. I have also spoken about the need to put back on the table the stop at Crusheen in County Clare. It would cost €1 million to build a stop there. Crusheen is becoming a satellite town for Ennis. There is a huge community being built up there and I have no doubt that if the rail service was available to them, people would use it. Attention is similarly needed in Ballycar, between Ennis and Limerick, where flooding has always been a problem. It was only by the grace of God that there was not an issue before Christmas, necessitating the closure of the line for several months as has happened in previous years. I am a big believer in rail transport. We have spoken before about a passenger link from Foynes into Limerick that would connect to the Dublin-Galway line. That is something that should absolutely be looked at, as should a rail link around Limerick. It just makes sense. Limerick is designed in such a way that a rail link would absolutely work. It would be of huge benefit to have a "DART for Limerick"-type arrangement.

What is happening with the just transition in Moneypoint is wonderful. The ESB is leading the way on it but we cannot take our finger off the pulse. Some of the money from the just transition fund must be used in west County Clare to mitigate the job losses of the people who traditionally worked in Moneypoint over the years and to support them and their families in education, redeployment and seeking re-employment, educational and training opportunities.One could not but be proud of this Bill. We are 90% of the way there in what we want to achieve. The other 10% is about bringing the stakeholders with us. The Minister has always believed in collaboration. This Bill should be grounded and founded on collaboration. I wish the Bill every success in passing through the House.