Vol. 972 No. 1
42. Deputy Timmy Dooley asked the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment his views on whether it is acceptable that a minimum of 159 post offices will imminently close; and the steps he will take to restore viability to the An Post network. [37875/18]
The Minister is well aware by now of the decision by An Post to orchestrate the closure of 159 post offices in some of the most marginal and rural parts of the country. I would appreciate it if he could set out his views as to whether this is acceptable.
As Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment, I am responsible for the postal sector, including the governance of An Post which is a commercial State body with a mandate to deliver a postal delivery service and a viable post office network. I am acutely conscious of the value placed by communities in both rural and urban areas on services provided by post offices. I am fully committed to ensuring a sustainable post office network is available to all citizens for the medium and long term.
It is widely accepted the post office network has been facing many challenges for some years, with a continuing decline in transaction numbers primarily driven by the move to online payments and online banking, as well as e-substitution. Standing still is not an option for the network. An Post has confirmed that it has implemented 17.5 of the 19 recommendations made in the Kerr report. I acknowledge the significant contributions made by Mr. Bobby Kerr and Senator Marie-Louise O'Donnell in helping to address issues surrounding the post office network.
In April this year An Post announced a renewed vision for the post office network, which centres on the availability of new services in a modernised and revitalised network. The announcement was supported by an agreement reached between An Post and the Irish Postmasters Union, IPU, executive following months of intensive negotiations. It was subsequently endorsed by 80% of IPU members.
In their negotiations with An Post postmasters sought both the modernisation of the network and a voluntary redundancy package for those who wanted to leave the business. It is important that the decision of those who wish to leave the business be respected. These are not decisions that have been taken lightly or without good reason. There are several reasons postmasters across the country are availing of this offer, including age, low population levels, as well as the fact that some postmasters are not even earning the minimum wage as a result of declining transaction levels and mail volumes. An Post advises that where a post office closes, 70% of the business transfers to a neighbouring office. The reality is that by facilitating those who wish to exit the business, neighbouring offices are further supported, thereby ensuring a more sustainable network for the future.
The IPU agreement represents a necessary first step in reinvigorating the national post office network and making it a viable, sustainable, modern and vibrant network for the future, capable of adapting to the changing environment in which it operates by providing a service which meets the needs of communities across the country, particularly in rural areas.
The wholesale closure of post offices across the country is a fundamental attack on rural Ireland and the people who live in it. I recognise that there has been a fall-off in the usage of post offices. Some Ministers, however, are blaming communities because they do not use them. How ridiculous is that? Life has changed and some people make their transactions online. The Minister and the Government need to accept this. However, the fact that fewer people utilise post office services should not be used as a ruse to close them. It effectively says to the elderly and vulnerable that they, as well as their needs and expectations, are not really important and do not matter to the Government. Instead, the Minister is asking them to travel 15 km to join a queue to give their business to somebody else and make it viable. That is not what public service is about. The reality is that the State has a responsibility to provide public services as close as possible to the people who need them - the elderly, the infirm and those with the greatest need in society. It is incumbent on the Government to retain these services in the community. It can be done at reduced cost and by co-locating post office services with existing businesses. That would support them and ensure services would be maintained, particularly the delivery of social welfare payments to the elderly and the most vulnerable at a location close to where they live. The Minister needs to rethink and stop robbing Peter to pay Paul by closing one post office to make another viable. That is making meal of one and fish of the other.
Let me make it crystal clear that my priority throughout all of this process, as I have said in the House before, is to make viable as many post offices as possible. The Deputy knows from the statistics we have given that one of the post offices that will close makes 11 social welfare payments a week. If we are honest about this, we all know examples of where people are bypassing the local post office and going to another one. We also know that young people are not using post offices. That needs to change and the only way it will change is by investing in the post office network. An Post is making an investment of €50 million in the network across the country. That is the equivalent of €45,000 per post office. It is a voluntary package. No one is being forced to go. People have options. They will have the same access to the investment as every other post office if they decide to remain in it. Thanks to the support of colleagues in the House, we probably have the only universal service obligation post office network in the world which is actually expanding its service from a five-day-a-week service to a six-day-a-week parcel service.
The Minister has claimed no one will be forced to go. However, they will be. When a post office closes and the postmaster or postmistress receives his or her rightful payment, the people who availed of their services will be forced to travel a further distance. The Minister gave an example of a post office with only 11 social welfare customers. There are others which make 100 and 200 social welfare payments a week, but the Minister did not refer to them. If the 11 payments were transferred to the local shop, local pub or other retailing business to give the owner of that business a couple of bob, from the experience I have had in talking to them up and down the country, they would do it. The Minister could do that more cheaply by giving the kind of contract that was in existence when a greater number of people used the service. Many of the shops in question would be delighted to have the business for less money. If the Minister removed some of the restrictions, they could handle it through the PostPoint system or a postal agency service. The key is retaining the making of social welfare payments within a village. The Minister knows full well that if that block of payments, whether it be 11 or 100, moves 15 km to the neighbouring village, it will shore up the post office in the neighbouring village, as well as the viability of its shops. However, when that money is taken out of a village when its post office closes, one is also effectively closing the shop. The Minister is buying into the viability model which has An Post working through this initiative. What about the viability of communities?
The Minister should follow what is being done in the UK and elsewhere in western Europe and provide a small amount of subvention to support those businesses in the individual villages that are happy to have the postal service delivered from their premises. They are not going to rob him. They do not want the type of contract that existed in the past. They are happy to provide payments to their community if the Minister is prepared to pay a reasonable amount of money and allow the service to be delivered across the PostPoint service.
An Post is altering its retail network to try to meet the changing needs of communities right across this country and reflect shopping patterns. The Deputy is correct in that there are communities where there are other retailers willing to operate the service and I accept that is an issue. That is the reason An Post has put out a call to those retailers to the effect that it is prepared to engage with them. As I said at a meeting of the Oireachtas committee, it is prepared to engage with them and look at the PostPoint service.
As the Deputy will be aware, the chief executive of An Post has said he is examining the potential of expanding the services that are available through PostPoint. There is also the matter of the smart account that is available through An Post to those individuals. There are a number of opportunities available as well as the potential to have the post office franchise operated from local retailers. An Post is willing to engage with retailers across communities where the postmasters decide to take the package. I actively encourage retailers to engage with An Post in that regard. There is a commitment from An Post that there is an appeals mechanism in place if the retailer is not satisfied with the engagement he or she receives from the company.
43. Deputy Brian Stanley asked the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment his views on the fact there is only one supplier left in the tender process for the national broadband plan; his further views on whether it is competitive for the State; and the capability of the company to fulfil the project in a realistic timeframe. [37869/18]
My question relates to the national broadband plan. When will the Minister announce the tender for it and when will that process be complete? Only one supplier is left in the tender process. I relayed to the Minister in the past the perils of that happening and I do so again today regarding the competitiveness of the process, the question marks over it and a realistic timeframe for its delivery. This is very important for rural Ireland.
I thank the Deputy for his question. The national broadband plan, NBP, is ambitious, with the objective of ensuring that access to a high speed broadband service is available to every premises in Ireland. Realising this objective will significantly enhance Ireland’s standing as a leading EU digital economy.
Bidders wishing to participate in the ongoing NBP procurement process had to pre-qualify in order to participate in that process. Only those bidders that could demonstrate they had the necessary economic and financial standing, together with the required technical and professional capability, were allowed to participate in the procurement. A single bidder scenario does not change this and the remaining bidding consortium has had to meet the relevant thresholds set out for the procurement process.
Up until the point where the procurement was about to enter its finals stages, there was a competitive process. Through the engagement with multiple bidders the NBP procurement team has had clear sight of the likely costs and revenues associated with delivering the high-speed broadband network in the intervention area. The NBP contract includes comprehensive governance provisions to ensure tight management of the build and operating costs.
The procurement process is now in its final stages and the bidder’s submission of a final tender will include its proposed technical solution and deployment plan.
I am pleased to inform the Dáil and, more importantly, the 540,000 families and businesses across rural Ireland who are awaiting high-speed broadband that today marks an historic milestone in the Government's national procurement of the broadband plan. Earlier today, the remaining bidder in the national broadband plan procurement process submitted its final tender to my Department. Over the coming weeks the Department's procurement team will evaluate that submission that was received earlier today. I look forward to receiving the output from that particular evaluation.
The NBP procurement process is unique in terms of its level of ambition and vision. Its focus is to ensure a future-proofed, technical solution that will allow this generation and future generations to participate fully in digital society. Due to the significance and scale of the project to deliver high-speed broadband to every single premises in Ireland regardless of location, the procurement process has been, by necessity, complex and thorough. As the evaluation process is now under way, I cannot comment further. Suffice it to say that today is a landmark date.
I listened very carefully to every word the Minister said. He said the final tender has been submitted and will be considered in the days, weeks and months ahead by his Department. He told me almost a year ago that it was in the final stages but he and I knew at that stage that it was not in the final stages, that nobody had sight of anything and that it was lost in a legal, financial and logistical mire. That is the truth of it. I ask the Minister to tell me the number of people who have been working on the tendering process and the length of time that has been going on.
The Minister has only one bidder left in the process. He has no plan B. It is either Enet or he calls a halt to the process. It is not just Sinn Féin saying that. Earlier this year, Professor John FitzGerald, speaking in respect of State contracts, stated: "If there is no queue of suppliers there will be no savings for the State." I told the Minister a year ago that if one was going to the market to sell a calf, a bullock or anything else, if there was only one buyer, one would be better off turning around and bringing the bullock back home. The Minister knows that is the case, as someone who is living in a rural area.
The Minister has chosen the privatisation and Enet model, Enet being the only company that can do that. He has not been able to tell us the size of the blank cheque this will cost taxpayers. We want to see this plan rolled out. We believe this process has been like a slow bicycle race.
The programme for Government states: "We will...provide additional exchequer capital, if needed, to deliver on our commitment to bring next generation broadband to every house and business in the country by 2020." It also states: "Once the contract is awarded the rollout phase will begin immediately". We are now 15 months from 2020. The taxpayer will now subsidise the company that now has control of the network - Eir - to hang cables on poles erected by the taxpayers and by public funds from this State.
The tender was submitted earlier today. That will be gone through by a team comprising approximately 80 people who have been involved in this procurement process, which also includes external advice that was available to the Department.
This procurement process has been complex. I accept it is quite technical. It is unique in terms of its level of ambition, vision and challenge. Thirty seven percent of our population live on 96% of the landmass of Ireland. This is unique in European, if not global, terms. Through this procurement process, we have been designing a technical solution that not only meets the needs of today and tomorrow but of the next generation and the one after that. I have given on occasion in this House examples of the previous scheme, the national broadband scheme, and the day it went live it was obsolete. This network will meet the needs of today, tomorrow, next year, the year after that and those of years to come.
Does the Minister still believe he will be able to run fibre to every home? We know that the 2020 target is unrealistic. As he knows, Enet runs the State's metropolitan area networks, MANs, systems, therefore, the State and Enet have been working together. The MANs contract for Enet was extended out to 2030. It has that contract, which was not subject to tender. The Minister has the power to tender that contract. The MANs were established for social, economic, regional and good reasons and we have no problem with that. What review was made with regard to pricing in the extension of that agreement? Has a report on this been published for and subsequently by the Minister? The pricing of these wholesale systems will affect homes and businesses in towns such as Portlaoise, Tullamore and others where the MANs systems are rolled out. I want the Minister to address that issue because the MANs systems are key to the future of broadband in rural and regional areas, and particularly in the 90 towns that have those systems.
Another issue, on which I have not been able to get an answer from the Minister, is in regard to the cost of this contract. He has quoted commercial sensitivity but it is as if the taxpayers are to keep their eyes shut while all this is happening.
The Minister will have a pen in his hand writing a cheque for this fairly soon and we have no idea what it will cost. This cannot be nailed down and we cannot even get a price range. It is estimated to be nearly €2 billion for the overall contract. How much of that is a State subsidy?
First, the tender was submitted today. I have not had sight of that tender, and nor should I. Deputy Stanley asked detailed questions about the metropolitan area networks, MANs, across the State. If the Deputy submits a question on that matter, we will provide the detail on it.
On the towns specifically, the Deputy will be aware that the towns serviced by the MANs are now getting high-speed broadband through SIRO, Virgin Media, Eir or some of the other operators. The MANs will be used as a backbone, as part of this procurement process, and provide the backhaul system for delivering high-speed broadband to rural premises across Ireland. The MANs network and the other State infrastructure will form a key element of that.
44. Deputy Timmy Dooley asked the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the status of the national broadband plan process; and the dates by which construction of the broadband network will commence and be completed. [37876/18]
I appreciate the Minister's confirmation that he has received the bid today. Will he tell the House who the bid is from? He is aware that in recent months Eir pulled out of the process, as did the SIRO consortium made up of the ESB and Vodafone, and we were left with one bidder, Enet. I understand that, prior to the break in the process, Enet was a consortium made up of SSE, the John Laing Group and Granahan McCourt Capital. Will the Minister confirm that this is the consortium that submitted the bid today?
The procurement process to select a company that will deliver high-speed broadband to 543,000 premises in the State intervention area is now in its final stages. The bidding consortium is proposing a predominantly fibre-to-the-home solution, which will be capable of delivering more than 100 Mbps to premises and up to 1 gigabit for businesses. This network will be a wholesale open access network, over which multiple retail providers will offer a range of services to citizens and businesses at competitive prices.
The deployment of the State intervention network will allow 1.1 million citizens to fully participate in the digital society. The intervention area includes 558,000 members of the labour force for whom a high-speed broadband network will open up possibilities for remote working. The intervention area also includes almost 56,000 farms, more than 44,000 small and medium enterprises and more than 600 schools.
As I outlined in my response to Deputy Stanley, my Department received today the final tender from the remaining bidder in the national broadband plan procurement process. I do not propose to comment further while the evaluation of the submission is ongoing. However, it is worth reflecting on the investment of more than €2.7 billion in high-speed broadband infrastructure that has taken place in Ireland in parallel with the national broadband plan procurement process. The commercial sector has clearly reacted to the programme for Government commitment to ensure access to high-speed broadband to every premises in Ireland by investing significantly in new infrastructure and by offering services with a minimum download speed in excess of 100 Mbps.
Deputy Dooley asked about the consortium. It is a Granahan McCourt Capital led consortium. While I do not propose to comment in any way on the submission received by my Department earlier today, I understand the consortium will issue a press statement later today providing some background detail.
The Minister is telling the House that Enet is no longer the lead bidder and that the company is not part of the consortium that is bidding. It seems that the John Laing Group is no longer part of the consortium. We are aware that SSE removed itself from the consortium some time ago. While the Minister will not tell us very much, by his failure to respond to the question, he is confirming that the only remaining bidder here is Granahan McCourt Capital. Can we make that assumption? I ask the Minister to answer that question.
As I said, I cannot or will not comment on that at the moment. I understand the consortium will issue a statement later today, which will provide detail on the questions that have been raised.
In light of the information the Minister is not giving us, does he have any concerns about the viability of the company in question and its ability to meet the requirements of this important contract? Some time ago, when I raised concerns in this House with the Minister about this particular bidder, he pounced on me and lectured me about the quality of the consortium. At that stage, the Minister put much stock in SSE and the John Laing Group and their international reputations.
The Minister will need to reflect very seriously on this matter in light of what is about to emerge on the change in character of the bidder that has submitted its final tender. I understand the political expediency of getting a deal signed, but this contract is for 25 years. The Minister may be gone from office and I may be gone from this House, but I do not intend to be part of leaving a mess behind us that does not deliver the long promised broadband services to 540,000 premises. This has been promised since 2012 and nobody in that cohort of 540,000 is any closer to seeing broadband delivered. There is no start date for the first house and no end date for the last house.
There are now real questions about the viability of the bid. Eir, Vodafone, the ESB and SSE have pulled out and my information is that the John Laing Group has pulled out. Enet has moved from the front to the back of the line. If that does not raise very serious questions about the viability and capacity of the State to roll out this service, I do not know what does. The Minister is driving headlong into this and failing to do what I previously asked him to do, namely, take time out to reflect on whether it will be possible to do this based on the kinds of tendering processes put in place in the first instance.
Let me be crystal clear for Deputy Dooley and all Members. As I stated, the procurement process involved is complex and each of the bidders had to provide evidence of the necessary economic and financial standing along with the required technical and professional capability to deliver on this. We received a tender earlier today and the evaluation team needs to be allowed the space to undertake a comprehensive and robust assessment of that tender.
The 543,000 families and businesses do not care what name is on the side of van. They want and deserve high-speed broadband and I am determined to ensure they get it.
45. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment if his attention has been drawn to proposals to build a liquefied natural gas, LNG, terminal here; his views on whether such facilities are compatible with the State's commitments to tackle climate change; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37591/18]
The question is on the proposal for a liquefied natural gas terminal in the Shannon Estuary. How is this proposal compatible with the State's commitment to tackle climate change, given that Ireland has banned fracking and given the likelihood, should the proposal proceed, that fracked gas from North America will be used off the Irish coast? This seems to fly in the face of the Minister's commitment to tackle climate change.
There have been a number of announcements of private sector commercial proposals to build liquefied natural gas, LNG, facilities in Ireland. These include the Shannon LNG project, which is designated as an EU project of common interest, and a number of other more recent proposals. These are commercial projects and the location, development and final investment decisions for these projects are ultimately the responsibility of the project promoters. In addition, it is the responsibility of the project promoters to comply with any legal and regulatory requirements, including requirements for planning permission, other consents or permits, and related environmental impact assessments.
Ireland’s energy policy is fully aligned with the EU’s climate and energy objectives on the transition to decarbonisation, which includes the continuous and ongoing review of policies to reduce harmful emissions, improve energy efficiency, incentivise efficient and sustainable infrastructure investment, integrate markets, and promote research and innovation while ensuring our energy security of supply is maintained and enhanced.
The development of an LNG facility would further enhance Ireland's security of gas supply by increasing import route diversity and would be compatible with the State's commitment to tackling climate change.
The 2015 energy White Paper, Ireland's Transition to a Low Carbon Energy Future 2015-2030, sets out a roadmap for Ireland to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by between 80% and 95% by 2050. The strategy is clear, in that non-renewable energy sources will make a significant, though progressively smaller, contribution to our energy mix over the course of that energy transition. The national mitigation plan, which I published in 2017, restates the Government's commitment to move from a fossil fuel-based electricity system to a low-carbon power system. The investment in further renewable generation is to be incentivised. The national development plan commits to a doubling of renewable electricity generation.
During the transition, gas has the potential to deliver significant and sustained benefits, particularly in terms of enhanced security of supply. Natural gas has the potential to play an important role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions in our power generation, industrial and commercial, residential and transport sectors by replacing more CO2-intensive fossil fuels. In Ireland, gas-powered generation provides an important backup for intermittent renewable wind generation within our electricity system.
The planning permission for an LNG terminal at Ballylongford has been extended by An Bord Pleanála for five years. It was due to expire in 2018. Compared with when that planning permission was first given, we now know more about the dangers of LNG, the way that fracking is conducted in North America and the damage the latter does to the environment and the planet. As such, it is extraordinary that An Bord Pleanála would decide to extend the licence by five years without even undertaking an environmental impact assessment. I congratulate the Friends of the Irish Environment on successfully challenging this decision in the High Court and having an injunction placed on it.
Everything the Minister has said indicates not only that there is a problem with our climate change strategy, but that we lack such a strategy. We are nowhere near reaching our commitment to reduce our CO2 emissions by 40% by 2030. We are at 10%. We know for sure that we will not be able to do it.
Will the Minister please repeat what he said about energy security? The planet does not recognise borders when it comes to climate change and toxic pollution, but the Minister seems to believe that it is okay for us to import fracked gas when we have banned it in Ireland. That is a contradiction.
First of all, the figure is 40% of our renewable electricity by 2020. I am determined to try to achieve that target.
The production, sourcing, buying and selling of natural gas produced outside this jurisdiction is an operational matter for the undertakings involved. There are a number of supply sources, with North America potentially one of those. Qatar is the largest producer of natural gas in the world and provides a substantial amount of LNG to Wales.
A number of projects have been proposed. I visited a floating LNG facility when I was in Malta last year. It has provided security of supply to that country.
The reality as the Deputy knows - it would be disingenuous not to acknowledge the fact - is that we are reliant on gas coming in through the interconnectors with the UK. If for geopolitical reasons gas was turned off in eastern Europe, it would have significant implications for employment, individuals and families in this country. My priority has to be to ensure that people have heat and electricity in the morning when they get up and that they have jobs to go to. My No. 1 priority as energy Minister is to ensure security of supply and that same has as low a level of impact on our environment as possible.
I must contradict the Minister's statement that his priority is just to supply energy. It is also to ensure that we move away from overheating the planet. Liquefied natural gas is the dirtiest fossil fuel imaginable - scientists argue it is as dirty as coal. What we did not know in 2008 when permission was first granted for offshore LNG licences was that methane emissions from natural gas are lethal to the planet. Since we know it now, why would we extend the licences and why would a Minister say that we must shore up our dependence on fossil fuels rather than move away from them? If LNG terminals were to be built in Ireland, it would lock this country into a fossil-fueled economy for a further 50 years. That does nothing to address our commitment to tackling climate change. In fact, we would be supplying gas to other parts of Europe.
The Minister's argument is disingenuous. He is not just the Minister for energy. Energy security is meaningless on a planet where there is no security for the people or other species living on it. That concern needs to be first and foremost in his mind.
I am not just the Minister for energy. That is why I have told the Deputy in my response that not only is it important that we have power in this country, but that it be clean power as well. I am determined to ensure that we have the cleanest possible generation. In terms of renewables, we have significant opportunities off our east and, in particular, west coasts. We have approximately 50 GW of potential electricity in that regard. I have previously spoken about an interconnector between the west coast and France to allow for the export of that to the European grid. However, we must also consider the short-term issues. Security of supply is a short-term issue for us, and that is something of which I as energy Minister must be conscious.
Regarding the three projects whose promoters have been in contact with my Department, no decision has been made to invest in any of them. I do not know whether any of them will go ahead. That is a matter for the investors involved.
46. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the position regarding Ireland's first voluntary national review for sustainable development goals, SDGs, in July 2018; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37510/18]
Will the Minister outline Ireland's position on our first voluntary national review of SDGs last July?
I thank the Deputy. In July, I presented Ireland's first national review of the SDGs to the United Nations High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development. Following the adoption of the 2030 agenda for sustainable development, including the 17 SDGs, by UN member states in 2015, the forum was designated as the central platform for the follow-up and review of the 2030 agenda at global level.
The presentation of the review fulfilled one of the committed actions under Ireland's Sustainable Development Goals National Implementation Plan 2018-2020, which I published in April 2018. The plan sets out how the Government will implement the SDGs at home and support countries around the world to do the same.
The review provided a comprehensive overview of Ireland's progress towards meeting each of the 17 SDGs and of how Ireland was supporting the SDGs' global achievement. An important secondary aim was to establish a baseline for Ireland's future SDG reporting. The review was evidence based, using the EU SDG indicator set developed by EUROSTAT, with corresponding national data for Ireland provided by the CSO.
The review demonstrated how every Department across the Government was contributing to achieving the SDGs, but it also made clear that Ireland still had work to do in order to become a truly sustainable society. Specifically, the review identifies Ireland's strengths in respect of those SDGs dealing with education, health, economic growth, innovation, certain environmental issues, and the enjoyment of a peaceful and safe society. However, we also face challenges in many areas, including addressing high levels of obesity, meeting our national poverty targets, achieving sustainable consumption and production, protecting our marine and terrestrial habitats, and achieving full gender equality in Irish society.
Both the review and my presentation to the UN drew attention to housing and homelessness and climate action as major challenges facing Ireland. As part of my presentation, I invited Ireland's two UN youth delegates for 2017 to 2018 to address the forum and to provide their perspectives on how the sustainable development goals, SDGs, are being implemented in Ireland. I did so because many of the SDGs are highly relevant to Irish young people's daily lives and demonstrate Ireland's ongoing commitment to involving stakeholders in the SDG process.
We have to acknowledge the very special role that Ireland played in developing the SDGs. That was our then ambassador, David Donoghue. We are in a unique position with that. There is always a danger, when we have agreed goals and targets, that we do not move on to the next phase quickly enough, which is implementation and monitoring. We know what they are about. They are about inequality. If we had to sum it up, we would agree that it is about that. Whatever about the inequalities that Ireland faces, we know that, when it comes to living with inequalities in the global south, in countries in Latin America and certain countries in south-east Asia, we are talking about a different kind of inequality.
I was at Concern's 50th anniversary in Dublin Castle recently and I heard the great enthusiasm and commitment there. Everybody was on the same page. They were talking about the momentum that gathered in New York. How do we move that momentum further? I know that suggestions are being made about the national action plan. One is that all Departments have to come together. There has to be high-level representation because otherwise we will not get policy coherence. The trade policies and tax policies all have to be aligned with our finance policies. Does the Minister expect there will be that cross-departmental group? I know his Department is the lead on this but it will not work unless the other Departments buy in.
I thank Deputy O'Sullivan. I acknowledge the tremendous work the Irish ambassador, David Donoghue, did on behalf of Ireland and Kenya, which led the charge for the development of these SDGs. People did not believe that it was possible to get agreement about SDGs. The Deputy is right about having co-ordination across Departments. It is my responsibility to ensure that happens, working with other Ministers. It is also important that individual Departments take responsibility for individual issues because if no one is responsible, then nothing gets done. We have been frank about the challenges that we have. We are engaging at official and ministerial level to progress these issues.
The question comes down to whether the Minister will be the person who will draw all of that together. The proposals from Coalition 2030 make sense. The national action plan was one. They also talk about a monitoring forum. I listened to the previous exchange. The elephant in the room is climate change. If we do not get that right, then none of those sustainable development goals will be achieved. The other point is that the public has to buy into this. Importantly, there has to be public awareness and participation. When we look at finance for development, which the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade seems to be committed to, the question seems to be one of moving towards 0.7% of gross national income, GNI. None of this will happen unless the resources go in. It is a matter for the Minister's Department but the other Departments have to be involved. We need NGOs and civil society to buy into that. That is a major piece of work that has to be done.
As part of the implementation plan over the next couple of years, priority is being given to public awareness and to stakeholder engagement. We accept that that is fundamental to this. My role as Minister is overseeing coherent implementation across Government and Departments. I have specific responsibility for energy, sustainable consumption and climate action. It is not just about providing leadership here at home. When I was in New York, I had the opportunity to show international leadership. Ireland is now taking a lead role in the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, with the Great Green Wall initiative, to look, across the Sahel region and north Africa, at building a physical barrier to the progression of the Sahara Desert, which has a direct impact on sustaining those communities along the Sahara Desert; to address some of the issues and challenges relating to migration; to provide viable futures for those communities; and, working at international level, to promote and develop that not just as a concept but with practical action on the ground.
