Lynn Boylan (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I echo what we said the last time we debated this Bill. There is unity across this House about being in favour of ending mink farming. Nobody here is calling for an extension of mink farming.I would have liked to have seen it abolished a long time ago given my experiences as an ecologist dealing with escaped mink and the damage they do to the natural environment. There is a unity of voice in the Chamber when it comes to mink farming. Now is the time it has to be abolished. The Government is introducing legislation to do this. Again, there is a unity of purpose in coming forward with amendments. Unfortunately, they were ruled out of order because they put a cost on the State. They were very sensible amendments on environmental impact assessments to prevent the lowballing of demolition processes, putting in place a training scheme fund for the workers and using five years rather than ten years in the method to calculate compensation. We know ten years is standard practice in other jurisdictions. Colleagues in the House have put forward other amendments, all trying to address the same issue, namely, a fair package for workers who are being told by the Government they are now out of work. The Government has made a policy decision that has resulted in them no longer having a job.

I am looking down the road at climate action and the importance of a just transition. If we really believe in a just transition and it is not just about a sound bite, then it is about bringing together workers, community, employers and government in social dialogue and about the investments needed for the fair transformation of society to a low-carbon economy. In 2018, when the Minister, Deputy Ryan, was in opposition he introduced a just transition Bill in the Dáil. He stated decarbonising our society requires changing everything, including our entire energy, food production, transport and industrial systems. He said we needed to get this change right, particularly in supporting and maintaining workers' rights, and that social justice and ecological justice go together. It is interesting that in his first act as Minister, when he introduced the climate Bill, there was not a single reference in it to just transition. Alarm bells were ringing then for members of the Opposition. The climate committee worked very strongly together. We were given umpteen assurances from the Government that the final climate Act would address just transition. It does not go far enough. Eminently sensible amendments on a just transition with regard to climate action were rejected. If we look at our Scottish counterparts, their climate Act has a just transition principles section. The entire Bill is drafted on the policy of just transition.

The reason I raise this is that we are debating legislation today that will put people out of work. This will also happen with climate action. In this situation we are talking about three farms and 30 workers in total. The Government is offering them a fairly insulting package. As Senator Boyhan said, we are not negotiating on the floor of the Seanad but we are not confident in what the Government is offering the workers. The workers are in the Chamber. They want to hear strong commitments. Once the Bill goes through, the leverage is gone. We only have the Minister's word on whether he will step up to the plate and deliver a just transition for the mink farmers. I have to say if this is the way we are looking at and approaching a just transition, I am very concerned about the road ahead and how we will meet our climate targets.

On the previous occasion I was in the Chamber debating this Bill, I made the point that I am from Dublin and I know it is tough enough already trying to sell climate action to people who are living in energy poverty. Rural Deputies and Senators will go into rural communities that will see enormous changes in how we produce food and heat our homes. What we are doing with the mink farmers does not bode well. I do not envy anybody who can point to this legislation and say we have treated workers correctly because we have not.

There is unity of voice today. Nobody is arguing for a delay in ending mink farming. What we want to hear from the Minister is what he will do to ensure the affected workers and farmers have a fair and decent package that will set a precedent for the just transition in all of the other sectors in which we will have to have a just transition.