6. Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment the additional measures under consideration to bring Ireland back on track to meet its carbon budgets and legally binding 2030 emissions reduction targets; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [44390/26]

Sentiment score: 0.22

While I welcome the progress that is being made, the EPA, as it stands, is telling us that, at best, we are only going to meet half of the targets that we need to meet for 2030. What urgent additional measures is the Minister and his Department considering to try to bring us further forward in reaching our 2030 goals?

Sentiment score: 0.63

At a recent meeting of the Committee of Public Accounts, the Minister's Secretary General and I discussed retrofitting and delivering energy efficient homes. She acknowledged that is a real issue and there is a workforce gap. Has the Minister's Department made an assessment of that gap? What measures is he taking to address it? The Minister mentioned an extra 1 million EVs on the road. What we really need is better public transport. In Fingal, as the Minister knows, we need better public transport. We need local buses to connect our sprawling towns with train lines. We need the electrification. I ask the Minister and his very capable Secretary General to work with urgency to deliver all of these climate measures to ensure that we meet as much of our target as possible by 2030.

Sentiment score: 0.22