Brian Stanley (Laois-Offaly, Sinn Fein)
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273. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if he will set out the different projects, schemes and Departments the carbon tax revenue in 2021 and 2022 was allocated to, in tabular form. [11411/23]

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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Each year, alongside the Budget, my Department issues a publication on the use of carbon tax funds for the forthcoming year. This paper details the specific allocation of carbon tax funds in line with the Programme for Government commitments and provides details of the areas that will receive funding.

In 2022, the carbon tax revenue available for investment was €412m. This is comprised of the revenue made available in 2021 (€148m) and 2020 (€90m) and an additional €174m in 2022.

€202 million of this carbon tax revenue was allocated to residential and community energy efficiency in 2022. This funding permitted the launch of a range of new and expanded supports for energy efficiency, including 80% grants for attic and cavity wall insulation and grant support of up to 50% for deep efficiency measures. More than half of these funds were allocated to provide free of charge energy efficiency upgrades to households in, or at risk of, energy poverty.

A further €174m of carbon tax revenues in 2022 were allocated to targeted social protection measures, such as increases in the fuel allowance, the living alone allowance, and the qualified child payment. In fact, the analysis conducted in support of Budget 2023 has found that households in the bottom five income deciles are better off as a result of the increased spending on social protection made possible by the increases to the carbon tax. So, the lowest income half of all households in Ireland are net beneficiaries from this increase in the carbon tax.

The remaining revenues (€36m) were allocated to fund the continuation of the 2020 and 2021 Carbon Tax Investment Programme. The specific programme allocations are detailed on the Department's website and include support for the Just Transition Fund, peatlands rehabilitation, the Greenway and Urban Cycling programmes, grants for Electric Vehicle purchase and infrastructure, green agricultural pilot schemes and a contribution to the Green Climate Fund, which provides financial support to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in developing countries and to help vulnerable societies adapt to the unavoidable impacts of climate change.

A table with the breakdown of the allocation of all carbon tax revenues to date is included below. This includes detail on the 2023 allocations for the Carbon Tax, which totals €623m, comprising continuation of the 2020 and 2021 Carbon Tax Investment Programme as mentioned above, as well as major increases in incentives for farming in a greener and more sustainable way, residential and community energy efficiency, and targeted social protection measures, such as increases in the fuel allowance, the living alone allowance, and the qualified child payment.

Table 1 - Carbon Tax Allocation 2020-2023

Full details on the allocation of carbon tax revenues are available in the Departmental paper "The Use of Carbon Tax Funds 2023", which is available from assets.gov.ie/235732/93f95f31-bc1e-4823-993f-af16492fe628.pdf