Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein)
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154. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the breakdown of current and capital expenditure for each climate action in the Climate Action Plan. [32832/21]

Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party)
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The European Green Deal commits to delivering net zero greenhouse gas emissions at EU level by 2050 and increasing the EU-wide emissions reduction target from 40% to up to at least 55% by 2030. This ambition aligns with our Programme for Government commitment to an average 7% per annum reduction in emissions from 2021 to 2030, and to achieving net zero emissions no later than 2050. The Climate Action Plan, currently being updated, will set out the measures and actions required to meet our 2030 target.

Delivering the actions in the Climate Action Plan and ultimately achieving the transition to net zero will require both public and private investment, complimented by taxation, regulatory and behavioural change measures. In terms of Exchequer investment, the National Development Plan 2018 - 2027, which is currently being reviewed, allocated €30.4 billion for investment in climate action, while the Programme for Government commits to allocating all additional carbon tax revenue, estimated €9.5 billion over the next ten years, for climate action with a particular emphasis on ensuring a just transition. In addition, the EU’s €750 billion Next Generation EU recovery package and €1 trillion budget require that money can only be spent on projects that meet certain green criteria, with 30% of all funding to go on climate change mitigation.

Failure to rapidly move to a carbon-neutral economic model will have far reaching negative impacts on the economy and the public finances; undermine the long-term, sustainable competitiveness of the economy; and lock Ireland into a redundant fossil-fuel based economic model. Embracing the transition will support further job creation through the development of new and emerging sectors. The green economy, including the retrofitting and renewable energy sector, the circular economy, clean mobility, green and blue infrastructure, sustainable agriculture and the bio-economy will create high quality employment opportunities that will be a source of significant employment growth over the coming decades, as well as supporting a stable tax base. In addition, failure to meet our legally binding EU targets could result in a cost to the Exchequer of up to €1.75 billion.