Alice-Mary Higgins (Independent) | Oireachtas source

As most Members of the House will know, I am a big advocate of fairly massive change in order that we deal with the climate crisis. I believe we have a few years of very significant change ahead of us. We will see sectors that will end or change. How we do it really matters. That is where it is about finding the commonality that is coming through, the idea of just transition, and what we do to bring that into effect. Just transition is not simply about certain areas or regions. It is around certain principles of how we approach the changes. In some cases, it may be that for sectors that will have to make really huge changes, we will end up with something almost like the workplace subsidy schemes that we have had in the past, where we will have to have sectors supported by the State through a major transition in terms of reimagining what they do. In other cases, as in this case, we will have areas where a sector will effectively end what it does. We have to do that right. There are three companies and 38 workers, as I understand it, but why people are working so hard to try to get it right and why the Minister is hearing this across the Chamber is because we know it sets as well a message for how we do things.

I tabled four amendments to this section. I submitted three different approaches to how the issue could be addressed, all of which, unfortunately, were ruled out of order because they are amendments the Minister and the Department need to come forward with. Looking at the amendments others have put forward and mine, one is in relation to including those redundancy and ex gratiapayments that recognise terms of service and where someone puts his or her life, as a worker, into an industry. We often talk about company owners, but workers put their lives into industries. They use their best years in working for an industry, and that needs to be recognised, not simply that they are unemployed tomorrow and they have the statutory redundancy, but the fact of what they have invested. That is where payments that recognise terms of service are so important.

I tabled another amendment that suggested there should be redundancy payments negotiated between the licensee and the workers, so if a company negotiates fair redundancy with its workers, that would be included in the compensation package set out in this Bill.In another approach, I gave entire discretion to the Minister to decide such further redundancy payments beyond the statutory minimum as the Minister may deem appropriate.

We are trying to problem solve. These are various approaches to try to address the same issue, which is fundamentally that we have to ensure those who have worked in the industry are properly supported as the industry comes to an end and they are not simply left with a minimum and best of luck for the future. I welcome the amendments tabled by Sinn Féin on particular employment and reskilling schemes. These are practical proposals being brought forward from throughout the House.

My other amendment to the section proposed to address a potential perverse consequence, which would be in line with all of our international obligations and our policies on demolition. As it stands, the Bill allows for compensation in respect of demolition where repurposing is not possible, but it does not allow for compensation in respect of repurposing. We know from an embodied energy perspective we want to avoid demolition wherever we can. The sensible thing is not to say compensation is only for knocking down a building but also that there is compensation if the building is adapted and put to a new purpose. It is very important we do not create an incentive whereby people feel they have to knock down a building to get money. This does not serve any of us.

I want to emphasise this is important as a point of principle, as people have said, in terms of how we move forward on just transition. It needs to be fast and fair. It is also important at a practical level. There are practical solutions. Given all our amendments have been ruled out of order, I hope the Minister tables Government amendments to address this issue.