Written answers

Tuesday, 29 April 2025

Department of Public Expenditure and Reform

Departmental Funding

Photo of Eoin HayesEoin Hayes (Dublin Bay South, Social Democrats)
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632. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform his views on the public and private financial resources required and available to support his Department’s plans to meet Ireland’s climate targets by 2030; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19102/25]

Photo of Jack ChambersJack Chambers (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)
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As outlined in the Programme for Government 2025: Securing Ireland’s Future, the Government is committed to ensuring that Government Departments, local authorities, and State agencies lead by example in climate action, integrating sustainability into all aspects of the Public Service. My Department has an important role to play across a range of areas in the achievement of our national climate objectives and I am committed to ensuring that these are delivered successfully.

Among the key priorities of my Department is to strengthen how we monitor and oversee climate related expenditure. This is important to:

  • Better understand expenditure patterns and the financial and economic impacts of climate change and climate action;
  • Promote the generation of robust information on the costs and value for money of climate measures across the public sector;
  • Integrate data on costs and value for money into the policy development and budgetary process across all Departments; and
  • Help to prioritise and direct funding to where it is most needed and can provide the greatest returns.
My Department is responsible for reporting on five actions included in the Climate Action Plan 2024 (CAP24), including those for implementation by other public bodies, namely the Office of Public Works (OPW) and the Institute of Public Administration (IPA) / OneLearning.

In parallel with the Department’s reporting on its actions under CAP24, CAP25 has been developed, and represents an update that outlines how the Government intends to meet its commitments to climate action in the year ahead. A mix of regulatory changes, taxation policy, subsidies and direct public investment will be required to fund climate action, along with a need for significant private investment.

Finally, my Department continues to implement the Public Sector Climate Action Mandate to support climate action within its own operations and with its clients and suppliers. Through the development and implementation of its Climate Action Roadmap, this Department has a focus on the organisational-level actions needed to meet the requirements of the Mandate and reach its 2030 carbon and energy efficiency targets. We are currently on target to meet all requirements, which are implemented through existing resource allocations. The 2024 Climate Action Roadmap for my Department can be found at: www.gov.ie/en/department-of-public-expenditure-ndp-delivery-and-reform/organisation-information/dpendr-climate-action-roadmap/

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