Results 141-160 of 1,069,727 for in 'Dáil debates' OR in 'Committee meetings' (speaker:Ciarán Cuffe OR speaker:Michael McNamara OR speaker:Réada Cronin OR speaker:Paul Kehoe OR speaker:Malcolm Noonan OR speaker:Paul Murphy OR speaker:Pádraig O'Sullivan OR speaker:Jack Chambers OR speaker:Richard Boyd Barrett OR speaker:Pa Daly OR speaker:Peter Burke OR speaker:Éamon Ó Cuív OR speaker:Pauline Tully OR speaker:Gino Kenny)

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Review of Climate Action Plan 2024: Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: I thank Senator Higgins for her questions. As I pointed out during my earlier contributions, it is not about the employment at the data centre; it is about how much employment it underwrites and supports. That is the key thing. There are so many companies in operation in our State that explicitly rely on data centres to underwrite their activities and keep the high-value jobs that are...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Review of Climate Action Plan 2024: Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: We have a process to manage it. We are all very honest and clear on this. I am not saying at this point that every data centre can get connected. We have to sustainably manage the energy we have available and ensure other sectors do not suffer. We are very ambitious when it comes to other areas in our economy and it is important the CRU manages that process. It will make a determination...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Review of Climate Action Plan 2024: Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: Anyone who says contrary to that, I believe is misleading people.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Review of Climate Action Plan 2024: Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: We are waiting for the CRU to make an adjudication, which it will do shortly. We have published our guidance in respect of cement. I had a round-table meeting with the cement group and representatives of Enterprise Ireland to try to ensure that it will be ready when the rules relating to public procurement change shortly. The members of the group will have to be ready to ensure that they...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Review of Climate Action Plan 2024: Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: The technical specification.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Review of Climate Action Plan 2024: Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: There are major opportunities with the just transition commission. I represent the midlands. I have seen how much my community has changed because of the transition that is being made. The Cabinet appointed a new commission under the Minister, Deputy Eamon Ryan, in recent days. This will be very important for the delivery of so much change in my region, particularly as it will give rise...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Review of Climate Action Plan 2024: Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: I thank the Deputy for those very important questions. As I pointed out earlier, the €300 million decarbonisation fund has seen significant allocations over the past two years, with approximately €28.8 million allocated in 2023 and more than €38.3 million this year. Companies with significant emissions are on the radar. Diageo, for example, has used it to put together...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Review of Climate Action Plan 2024: Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: The SEAI will have the budget and will be implementing it.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Review of Climate Action Plan 2024: Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: I agree. It is a very serious challenge. As I have said, we have to sustainably manage the challenge because something that is not often referred to in this debate is the number of jobs supported by data centres like the one the Deputy mentioned in Clonee. This is a critical thing that we have to understand. Data centres do require significant infrastructure but they provide very...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Review of Climate Action Plan 2024: Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: Construction waste accounts for about 41% of our industrial emissions so it poses a very serious challenge. I visited some sights and saw the work being done to try to change the processes. I have seen large amounts of recycled material being used by those companies. They continue to do a lot of work to try to utilise more carbon-neutral processes. That being said, the actual process of...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Review of Climate Action Plan 2024: Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: As someone who brought forward the legislation to establish MARA and provide a planning and consent regime for offshore renewable projects when Minister of State with responsibility for local government and planning, I believe it is important that we urgently address the west coast. We have DMAPs for the east and the south but the west coast will be a significant challenge. There are a lot...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Review of Climate Action Plan 2024: Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: The Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications has published a national strategy.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Review of Climate Action Plan 2024: Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (24 Oct 2024)

Paul Murphy: Has the Minister been lobbied by the data centre industry either individually as data centres or the varying lobbying organisations? If so, what have been they been pushing for and what has been his response? What measures are being taken to ensure the policy on data centres does not place significant stress on Ireland's water supply, as well as the stress on our electricity supply? We...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Review of Climate Action Plan 2024: Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: In response to Deputy Murphy, ye, I have been lobbied by all sectors. We have a lobbying register in this country, which was set up by my party in government to make how public representatives are asked to take certain courses of action more transparent. That does not mean we do it. I listen to people fairly. I also reflect on where our economy is but the key point is that this...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Review of Climate Action Plan 2024: Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (24 Oct 2024)

Paul Murphy: What did they request?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Review of Climate Action Plan 2024: Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: Data centres are looking for a sustainable large energy user connection policy that will get them across the next number of years and get our country across the next number of years. I have met many industries. I had a trade mission on the west coast and one on the east coast. Some significant employers in this country would point out how important it is to have certainty for our country...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Review of Climate Action Plan 2024: Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (24 Oct 2024)

Paul Murphy: To be clear, the Minister agreed with their asks.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Review of Climate Action Plan 2024: Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: No, I do not agree with-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Review of Climate Action Plan 2024: Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: I cannot go into everyone's ask here-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Review of Climate Action Plan 2024: Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (24 Oct 2024)

Paul Murphy: I am just wondering. He tells me-----