Climate change is a threat to all of us and our way of life. We all recognise the need to take urgent action.
Fine Gael is driving action at national and local level to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to improve our natural environment. This will give us cleaner air, warmer homes, shorter commutes, and a better quality of life, while preventing catastrophic climate change.
Fine Gael in government launched the Citizens’ Assembly on Climate Action and the All-Party Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action. Both helped to shape the 2019 Climate Action Plan – the first comprehensive whole-of-government and whole-of-society plan to tackle Climate Change.
With the 2019 Plan, we progressed the concepts of carbon budgets and sectoral targets, we established the Climate Action Delivery Board to monitor and drive results, we established the expert-led Climate Action Advisory Council, and we embedded climate action in government policies.
The Climate Act we passed in July 2021 commits Ireland to reach a legally binding target of net-zero emissions no later than 2050, and a cut of 51% by 2030. It also embeds the process of carbon budgeting into law and strengthens the role of the Climate Change Advisory Council.
With the growing impact of climate change, and with the limited impact of the Covid-19 Pandemic on emissions, we have, with our coalition partners, launched the Climate Action Plan 2021.
Climate Action Plan 2021 will help bring down our greenhouse gas emissions in a way that embraces new technology, creates new jobs, protects rural communities and supports households, businesses and communities to make the transition to a zero-carbon future.
The 2021 Plan makes Ireland one of the most ambitious countries in the world on climate action and will put our country on a more sustainable path.
The proposals we are putting forward are the least-cost, highest benefit, most reasonable measures available. We are taking a sensible, practical approach, one that will maximise the benefits to society and our economy.
This is a huge opportunity to create new jobs and grow businesses, like offshore wind, cutting-edge agriculture, or making our homes warmer and safer. This plan does mean a huge shift in the energy we use, how we manage our waste, our housing stock and transport systems.
We all have a role to play, as Ireland is the second-largest source of greenhouse gases per person in the EU.
Top 5 Actions by 2030
- We are changing our electricity system, less coal, oil and gas and more renewables (increase the proportion of renewable electricity to up to 80% by 2030)
- We investing in our transport systems (500,000 extra walking, cycling and public transport journeys per day by 2030, electric vehicle rollout and roll-out of rural public transport through Connecting Ireland)
- Changing our heating systems in our homes. Helping over 500,000 people insulate their homes or change their heating systems
- Land use, investing in forestry and rewetting and restoring our bogs
- Making agriculture and our food systems more sustainable, working with farmers in our crucial beef and dairy sectors to reduce emissions while maintaining production levels