Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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I am, of course, concerned that many businesses have yet to embark on their decarbonisation and sustainability journey. We need to bring all enterprises with us as we transition to a more sustainable, low carbon economy. I am conscious that businesses - particularly smaller businesses - have many competing priorities at present. That is why I and my Department have been focusing on meeting businesses and engaging with them wherever they are currently on their transition journey, and demonstrating that there are simple, cost-effective things every company can do to get started.

This year, I and my Department have run eight ‘Building Better Business’ events throughout the country to promote engagement with the climate action and digitalisation agendas, with a final event to take place in Dublin in early December. My Department, Enterprise Ireland, IDA and our Local Enterprise Offices, and other state agencies such as SEAI, SkillNet Ireland and business organisations have extensive programmes to engage businesses in upskilling and investing on this agenda. We have significantly steeped up our awareness raising and communications campaigns to bring these advisory and funding programmes to the the attention of business. The response has been extremely positive and we have found an awareness and willingness in our enterprise base to cease the opportunities and challenges of the green transition.

Thousands of businesses are being supported through the Green Transition Fund, SEAI energy programmes, SkillNet Ireland training, the LEO Green for Business programme, and a range of other advisory, training and grant aid offerings. We are constantly looking for ways to better equip enterprises for this transition, and to increase the uptake of available supports - for example, we amended SEAI's Solar PV grants for businesses this summer to make them more accessible and attractive.

The Deputy rightly identifies that the European Green Deal amounts to a transformation in the business landscape, and businesses can start now to prepare for a market-place that prioritises sustainability, circularity and informed consumers. The Green Deal consists of a range of measures to make the EU’s climate, energy, transport and taxation policies aligned and consistent with reducing EU-wide greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% by 2030, compared to 1990 levels. It is essential that where regulations place a new or increased responsibility on businesses, that it is a responsibility that reflects the sector, scale, environmental impact, and sophistication of that business, and not a 'one size fits all' set of regulations. I believe, on balance, that that objective is being achieved.

For any business starting on their decarbonisation journey I would advise them to try out the Climate Toolkit for Business and the SEAI Energy Academy. The Toolkit provides practical and cost-effective actions that every business can take to support their sustainability, and build resilience. The SEAI Energy Academy provides access to high quality, on demand training for businesses and their employees to under stand their energy use and reducing its climate impacts.