Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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Sustainable finance has been part of our Ireland for Finance Strategy and its Action Plans since 2019, and Ireland is well placed to become a leading sustainable finance hub. For the past number of years, we have prioritised developing the sustainable finance sector, as part of our international financial services strategy, Ireland for Finance, and in our engagement at EU level.

In this context, Ireland strongly supports the EU taxonomy for sustainable activities which is at the heart of the sustainable finance policy and the Department of Finance actively engages in its development. This EU level legislation sets out common, science-based definitions of environmentally sustainable economic activities, for voluntary private sector use to guide and scale up sustainable investments to support net zero goals. Requirements under climate adaptation and mitigation objectives are now in place, as are reporting and disclosure requirements for firms using the Taxonomy.

Within the EU, at both a Ministerial and at an official level, Ireland works to ensure the regulatory framework for sustainable finance is ambitious and transparent while remaining usable for companies. We engage continuously with our European partners on the legislative proposals and other related actions. The Department engaged constructively with the European Commission and fellow Member States across several files, in particular on the Taxonomy and Green Bonds. My officials attend the Member State Expert Group, which works on developing the taxonomy delegated acts.

The Roadmap you mention is a part of this development and is an industry-led initiative of which we have and continue to be supportive. The roadmap called for the establishment of an International Sustainable Finance Centre of Excellence to serve as an essential platform in meeting the ambitions of Ireland’s Sustainable Finance Roadmap.

The Centre was established in October 2022 with the support of Skillnet Ireland, and supported the delivery of other Roadmap actions including the publication of research reports and the annual Climate Finance Action week in December 2023, during which I launched the first joint Irish-French sustainable finance seminar.

Indeed, throughout 2023 several measures were delivered including the launch of a number of new public courses in the field, such as a postgraduate diploma in Sustainable Finance Reporting and in Disclosures and Sustainable Financial Technology & Innovation. The support by Skillnet for the development of an educational and training offering with the aim of building a strong compliance culture is a particular focus of state involvement. The Irish Government has invested public money in training, developing new courses, and upskilling more than 4,000 professionals in sustainable finance to date.

My Department continues to engage closely with stakeholders to advance the sustainable finance agenda. This includes a specific focus on sustainable finance within the ‘Update to Ireland for Finance: Action Plan 2024’ which will be brought to Government shortly. In addition to fostering a regulatory framework that enables a high quality and transparent sustainable finance sector, these measures seek to improve industry readiness and build skills in order for firms to be able to expand their sustainable investments while complying with EU requirements.