Jerry Buttimer (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire. Senator McDowell's reference to aspiration versus ambition, plan, succession and implementation is a very apt place to begin. This is a very important debate but it is not just a debate. It is about changing how we do business and changing our lifestyles. That is why it is important this debate is healthy. As Senators Mullen and McDowell said, it is also about challenging whether we are right as a Government in how we are doing this and how we can achieve the climate action plan figures, which we have to do and which have to be attainable. If we look at the EPA report indicating that our emissions have increased by 6% in 2021 following the hiatus in 2020, it shows we have a job of work to do.

I compliment the Minister, his Department and the National Transport Authority on their very positive and ambitious plans - they are not just plans but are becoming realities - for the overhaul of the public transport network in Cork and the commitment of the Minister, on behalf of the Government, to those plans. In the context of Senator McDowell's remarks, that is an example of a Minister in a Government who is driving, with the local authority and key stakeholders in the region, the ambition to increase public transport use. I am genuinely upbeat about the BusConnects programme for Cork. We thought it was brilliant to have one 24-hour bus service. I have used it, both coming and going, at all hours of the day and night. To now have a second one, going from Carrigaline to Hollyhill, is welcome. What is even more important about the Cork routes is we now have routes that were never serviced before being included, which gives the option to make that modal shift from the car to the bus. It is to be hoped that in time, with Iarnród Éireann, we will see the transformation of light rail from Mallow to Cork and from Cork to Youghal, although that might be too ambitious.What a pity we got rid of the west Cork railway. What short-sightedness. It would be a treasure to have now.

Under Ireland 2040, Cork is a growth area, as we know. It is the counterfoil to Dublin. Demand is growing and expectation is high. That is why the 24-hour bus service is important. It is more important to have high-frequency services. People will switch to buses because of their frequency. I live in an area with a good, frequent, reliable and on-time service. I thank Bus Éireann in Cork for that.

I know the Minister is committed to this. I hope he can persuade his Government colleagues during budget negotiations, if not before, that public transport fares should be further reduced and that the reduced fares should be retained beyond 2023, which I believe is the current plan. It is important that the 20% fare reduction we have introduced continues. There is a debate about whether public transport should be free and I know some people are very strong proponents of that proposal. I would be open to that but I acknowledge the Government must create revenue to pay for investment.

Senator McDowell in his contribution spoke about our targets for 2030. I have attended a number of events organised by the Society of the Irish Motor Industry and the car industry in Cork and Dublin. There are concerns that we will not meet our target for electric cars by 2030 or the targets outlined in the climate action plan. Some 774 battery-only electric vehicles were registered in May 2022. I know that 43.14% of the fleet is now electric, plug-in hybrid or hybrid. I wonder will we achieve the targets in the climate action plan.

I hope that as part of the budget we will continue to incentivise retrofitting. There are issues around retrofitting at the moment because of the lack of availability of work crews. There are also issues around gaining access to information. Cars are also an issue.

I commend the Minister on the work he is doing. I commend the whole-of-government approach that is being taken. To his credit, the Tánaiste, before he became a part of this three-party Government, was one of the first party leaders, other than the Minister to speak about the importance of climate action and climate change.

The Minister of State, Deputy Smyth, said that the challenges we face are stark. We have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to help the next generation. That is our challenge. I am firmly convinced that we will do that, under the direction of the Minister. I thank him for being here and commend the statements to the House. As Senator McDowell said, we should continue to regularly debate different aspects of the whole-of-government approach to the issue of climate action.