Written Answers Nos. 188-197
188. Deputy Brian Stanley asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications following the announcement by his Department that credit unions have been appointed sustainable development goal champions for 2023 and 2024, if he will outline the tangible outcomes that can be expected from this announcement; and if any KPIs have been agreed between his Department and the credit union sector. [23723/23]
View answerEstablished in 2019, the SDG Champions Programme was developed to raise public awareness of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and to demonstrate that everyone in society can make a contribution to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
Strategic Objective 3 of Ireland’s Second SDG National Implementation Plan 2022-2024 (NIP) is “Greater partnerships for the Goals” and the SDG Champions Programme is a key mechanism towards achieving this. The Credit Unions, along with 25 other organisations have been appointed as part of the 2023 to 2024 SDG Champions Programme, from across the public, private, community, voluntary, youth and NGO sectors.
The role of an SDG Champion is to act as an advocate and promoter of the SDGs and a good practice example of how an organisation can contribute to the SDGs and integrate them into their work and activities.
Working with the Champions, the Department will host quarterly meetings to allow for peer and industry learning amongst Champions to showcase how they are promoting the SDGs and integrating them into work programmes and strategies. In addition, champions will be required to submit a quarterly report, to showcase their activities and work. Reports will be uploaded to gov.ie (gov.ie/SDGs) and to the SDG Geohive (Ireland’s Hub for Sustainable Development). At the end of their tenure, each Champion will also take part in a showcase event to demonstrate what has been achieved throughout the period.
The ongoing promotion and integration of the SDGs into the organisations’ activities, along with increased awareness, illustration of best practice, and knowledge-sharing resulting from the programme, are intended to act as a catalyst for other organisations and members of civil society to collaborate and to incorporate the SDGs into their daily lives to increase Ireland’s collective ability to achieve sustainable development.
189. Deputy Niall Collins asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications if there is any assistance or funding available for a start-up company (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23899/23]
View answerThe Climate Action Plan 2023 includes a suite of measures and actions to realise the full potential of Ireland’s onshore and offshore renewable energy resources and sets a course for Ireland to achieve a low carbon climate resilient future through sustainable social and economic development.
In that context, my Department is currently developing the Small-Scale Generation Scheme (SSGS) for renewable electricity generators from 50kW to 6000kW, in order to support the deployment of rooftop and ground-mounted solar PV in cohorts that are not as suited to other support measures, such as the Micro-generation Support Scheme and the utility scale Renewable Electricity Support Scheme (RESS).
This SSGS scheme is expected to be launched later in 2023. The scheme will enable larger businesses, farms, public buildings, and community projects to maximise their participation in the energy transition.
The Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment provides a range of financial supports designed to assist with the establishment and/or growth of enterprises, including support from Local Enterprise Offices and Enterprise Ireland.
190. Deputy Denis Naughten asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications the specific methane indicators used in Irish climate calculations and assessments which are based solely on Irish-generated data; if he plans to collate Irish-generated data for such purposes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23932/23]
View answerThe full range of greenhouse gases reported under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) are to be found in Irelands’ National Inventory Report. This is compiled and submitted by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) annually to the UNFCCC. The latest report and the supporting information for the period 1990 to 2021 is publicly available on the EPA website (www.epa.ie). There are three tiers of methodological complexity in determining the calculations and assessments for reporting. Tier 1 is the most basic method, Tier 2 intermediate and Tier 3 most demanding in terms of complexity and data requirements.
Ireland’s national circumstances are well captured using Tier 2 methods for our major sources of methane. These are enteric fermentation and manure management associated with cattle and the methane emissions from solid waste disposal sites. The cattle herd emission estimates are based on two EPA funded research projects, and these allow for the modelling of 60 different Irish production systems.
For the other reportable activities, Tier 2 and Tier 3 methods are used for methane emissions as from 1.A.1 Energy Industries, 1.A.3.a Domestic Aviation and 1.A.3.b Road Transport, respectively. Tier 1 methods and Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) default emission factors are used for other methane emissions. The EPA has a rolling program to improve the Tier levels across all relevant activities.
191. Deputy Peter Fitzpatrick asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications for information on why Parkwind’s Oriel Windfarm in Dundalk Bay was unsuccessful in its recent bid to generate electricity from offshore wind; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23942/23]
View answerThe provisional results of the first offshore wind auction under the Renewable Electricity Support Scheme (ORESS 1) were announced on 11 May 2023 by EirGrid, who administer the auction process on behalf of my Department. Reaching this stage of offshore wind deployment is an enormous milestone for Ireland, and from which it will be clearly understood internationally that Ireland is serious about our ambitions for offshore energy, and by extension, our ambitions for renewable energy, emissions reduction, and energy security.
Overall, the provisional results are hugely positive, both in terms of the volume of renewable energy procured and the low price at which it has been secured for up to twenty years. The average price of €86.05 per megawatt hour, is one of the lowest prices in the world paid by an emerging offshore wind market. Over 3GW of offshore wind capacity was procured at the auction. This is the largest volume of renewable energy Ireland has ever procured at auction, sufficient to meet approximately a third of current electricity consumption. It is also enough to power over 2.5 million Irish homes with clean electricity and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by over 1 million tonnes in 2030. Final ORESS 1 results will be confirmed in June.
Like the onshore auctions before it, RESS 1 and RESS 2, ORESS 1 is a competitive auction-based process in which projects compete against each other, by bidding as low as possible, to ensure maximum value for money for the Irish consumer. As a competitive process, by definition, there must be both successful and unsuccessful participants.
Six projects were eligible to compete in the auction process, by virtue of holding both a Maritime Area Consent (MAC) and a Grid Connection Assessment. These projects submitted bids. Successful bids were determined by EirGrid by selecting bids in ascending order, until the competition ratio was reached, which was independently determined by the CRU. Four of the projects were successful in this process and two projects were unsuccessful.
Unsuccessful participants in ORESS 1 retain their MACs for a limited time period, during which time they may seek an alternative route to market to satisfy the conditions of the MAC.
192. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Defence if he will establish a citizens' assembly on security in all aspects; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23898/23]
View answerThe Consultation Forum on International Security Policy will take place in three different locations over four days at the end of June - on 22 June at University College Cork, on 23 June at the University of Galway, and on 26-27 June at Dublin Castle. Louise Richardson, DBE, has been appointed as Chair. The Forum will draw on the principles underlying the Citizens’ Assembly model but will be an open discussion which any member of the public can access or participate in.
The Forum will be a broad discussion, examining issues such as Ireland’s work to protect the rules-based international order, through our engagement in peacekeeping, conflict prevention and peacebuilding, and arms control and disarmament. It will look at new and emerging threats, including cyber, hybrid, disinformation and threats to critical infrastructure. The Forum will also examine our current and future engagement in EU Common Security and Defence Policy, as well as our existing relationship with NATO through the Partnership for Peace.
Attendance at the Forum will consist of invited guests, from Ireland and internationally, with expertise and practical experience in the areas to be discussed. I anticipate that those attending will also include various NGOs and, very importantly, members of the general public, for whom spaces will be reserved.
Discussions will be live-streamed and there will be an option for online submissions. The objective of the Forum is to initiate an open and evidence-based discussion on the State’s foreign and security policy. Anyone interested in engaging in the process will be able to do so.
Full details of the programme over the four days, the arrangements for registration, live-streaming and the making of submissions will be published by the Departments of Defence and the Department of Foreign Affairs in the coming weeks.
Importantly, there are no predetermined or preconceived outcomes from discussions at the Forum and participants will be free to raise any relevant issues during deliberations. The Chair’s report will outline what transpired over the four days but will not include recommendations. Once it has been presented to me, I will consider its findings and decide whether to make recommendations to Government.
In view of the valuable role which the Forum will play and the breadth of issues which it is intended to discuss, the Government does not propose to establish a Citizens' Assembly at this time.
193. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Defence his views on whether the Government’s consideration of joining a NATO subsea group would breach Ireland’s neutrality as reported (details supplied); and the estimated cost to the State to finance membership of the NATO subsea group. [23947/23]
View answerIreland's relationship with NATO is conducted through Partnership for Peace (PfP), of which Ireland has been a member since 1999. Participation in PfP is seen as fundamental to Ireland being able to meet its obligations in providing professional peacekeepers for international crisis management and peacekeeping operations mandated by the UN and in enhancing the Defence Forces’ interoperability with other professional military forces. Participation in Partnership for Peace does not involve any commitment to NATO’s common defence arrangements.
Partnership for Peace retains its own separate identity and was founded based on an individual bilateral relationship between NATO and each of the Partnership for Peace countries.
Ireland is currently in the process of developing a renewed partnership with NATO through a new Individually Tailored Partnership Programme (ITPP). This new framework presents an opportunity to enhance our cooperation in relevant areas of choice, potentially including such areas as critical undersea infrastructure.
In February 2023, the NATO Secretary General announced the creation of a Critical Undersea Infrastructure Coordination Cell. Further details on how Partners, including Ireland, may engage with the new cell are likely to emerge after the NATO summit in July.
Joining the Critical Undersea Coordination Cell would be consistent with Ireland's approach to joining other NATO initiatives, including the NATO Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence Tallinn. Participation in the Coordination Cell has no implications for Ireland's traditional policy of military neutrality.
194. Deputy Richard O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Transport if he will provide an update on the number of people waiting on a driving test in each county; when the backlog will be dealt with, given that many people are extremely stressed waiting on a test as they require a car to travel to college as they live in the countryside and there is no public transport available, and the fact that there is a lack of student accommodation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23823/23]
View answerThe operation of the national driving test service is the statutory responsibility of the Road Safety Authority and the information requested is held by them. I have therefore referred this question to the Authority for direct reply. I would ask the Deputy to contact my office if a response has not been received within ten days.
I would like to assure the Deputy that my Department is working closely with the Authority on addressing driver testing waiting times, which is an issue of great concern.
The service has been under significant pressure to meet unprecedented demand, which is up 28% on 2021 figures. This increase in demand for driving tests and the time to invitation for learner drivers has a number of contributing factors which include an increase in learner permits in circulation, increased capacity in the Driver Theory Test and an increase in Approved Driving Instructors capacity to deliver lessons to learner drivers.
The RSA has reviewed the capacity of the driver testing service to meet demand and following a request for additional resources in March 2023, my Department has given approval for the recruitment of up to 75 driver testers. This is in addition to the 30 testers who were previously sanctioned in July 2022 and which have been fully deployed since the end of March 2023. This brings the total number of sanctioned driver tester posts to just over 200.
It is expected that once these additional 75 driver testers are recruited, trained and deployed, the backlog for driver testing services will start to reduce from October 2023 and agreed service levels should resume by early to mid-2024. The additional testers will be assigned to fill current vacancies and otherwise allocated to centres with the highest demand for tests. The recruitment campaign is currently under way.
195. Deputy Emer Higgins asked the Minister for Transport the reason for the decrease in frequency in the P29 bus service from Adamstown, Lucan to Ringsend; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23773/23]
View answerAs Minister for Transport, I have responsibility for policy and overall funding in relation to public transport; however, I am not involved in the day-to-day operations of public transport. The National Transport Authority (NTA) has statutory responsibility for securing the provision of public passenger transport services nationally and for the scheduling and timetabling of these services in conjunction with the relevant transport operators.
In light of the Authority's responsibility in this area, I have forwarded the Deputy's question in relation to the decrease in frequency in the P29 bus service from Adamstown, Lucan to Ringsend, to the NTA for direct reply. Please advise my private office if you do not receive a response within ten working days.
196. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Transport the estimated full-year cost of making all public transport free; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23797/23]
View answerAs Minister for Transport, I have responsibility for policy and overall funding in relation to public transport; however, I am not involved in the day-to-day operations of public transport. The National Transport Authority (NTA) has statutory responsibility for the regulation of fares charged to passengers in respect of public transport services provided under public service obligation (PSO) contracts.
The NTA commissioned a report with Ernst & Young Business Advisory Services which examined the impacts of free fares on public transport. That report concluded that to fund a fully free public transport system as it stands today, without accounting for the likely increased passenger demand, would require an additional €540m in Exchequer funding per annum at a minimum, on top of the existing annual PSO subvention which is €563.55 million for 2023.
The report also found that any increase in public transport demand due to free fares would largely be achieved by reductions in walking (7%) and cycling (13%), resulting in just a 1% reduction in car travel.
My Department’s funding for public transport services is therefore focussed on existing fare initiatives and service improvements such as BusConnects in the five cities, expanding town services in the larger towns and rolling out Connecting Ireland in rural Ireland. These improvements are delivering real benefits for citizens across the country and I look forward to seeing more of them delivered this year and beyond.
197. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Transport the average unit cost of new electric buses; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23798/23]
View answerAs Minister for Transport, I have responsibility for policy and overall funding in relation to public transport. The National Transport Authority (NTA) has responsibility for planning and development of public transport infrastructure, including procurement of the national bus fleet.
Noting the NTA's responsibility in the matter, I have referred the Deputy's question to the NTA for a direct reply. Please contact my private office if you do not receive a reply within 10 days.
