Carol Nolan challenges Just Transition, defends rural workers
Carol Nolan spoke in a debate on 16 June 2021 about the Just Transition and its impact on rural workers, peat contractors and Bord na Móna workers. She said the bill would do "irreparable damage", accused the minister and the Green Party of tunnel vision and hypocrisy, and rejected the proposed approach.
Critique of the Just Transition bill
The deputy said speaking on the matter was not enough and urged the minister to take representations seriously. She warned the bill will harm ordinary workers and families in rural Ireland and argued it fails to reflect the needs of those facing the brunt of change.
Questions about engagement with workers
The deputy asked whether the minister had met peat contractors or Bord na Móna workers, saying claims to have people’s interests at heart were not borne out by engagement. She said tens of thousands of constituents in rural areas were being represented and their voices needed to be heard.
Concerns for the Midlands and document detail
The deputy criticised the lack of focus on the Midlands, noting there was only one reference to the region in a 7,000-word document. She described the approach as tunnel vision and said it signalled how little regard the plan shows for the Midlands.
Forestry targets and implementation failures
The deputy referenced the programme for government commitment to plant 8,000 hectares of forestry annually and said the minister was not even meeting existing climate targets. She urged a focus on forestry policy, faster release of licences and greater involvement of people in forestry as a better route to reach targets.
Accusations of hypocrisy and rejected amendments
The deputy accused the Green Party of hypocrisy and said the Minister of State had failed to accept amendments intended to address the forestry crisis. She reiterated that the proposed advisory and legislative approach would not be accepted by her or her constituents.
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Minister, I would just like to come back to the piece on the Just Transition which we have spoken on extensively here tonight, but speaking on it isn't enough Minister, we need you to seriously take on board what we have said. We are representing tens of thousands of constituents in rural Ireland, we are representing the real workers, the workers who are facing the brunt of this. Minister, I would like to ask you, have you met the PEAT contractors or the Bordnemona workers at any stage? I mean, you claim to have the genuine interests of people at heart here, but honestly you don't. And this bill, as I said to you, is going to do irreparable damage. I mean, if you really felt that there was a need for a transition that was just, particularly in the Midlands, why then do we only see one reference in a 7,000 word document? Is that how little you think of the Midlands? And just to point out to you Minister, I really feel that you need to take on board what's been said here. There's tunnel vision. And Minister, from what I can see of the Green Party, they're highly hypocritical. The Minister of State, Minister Hackett, came in here and pledged to sort out the forestry crisis. She did not accept one amendment from us either. Again, continued with tunnel vision. Minister, as well as that, you have targets in the programme for government which you helped devise with Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael. You did a deal, and a deal that's going to harm rural Ireland. And in that programme for government, you commit to making sure that 8,000 hectares of forestry are planted annually. Now, Minister, you're not even making your own targets. You're not even reaching your own climate change targets. But yet you're ready to punish people, ordinary workers and ordinary families. Would it not serve you better to focus on the forestry and to get more people involved in forestry and devise a proper policy and make sure that the licences are released as soon as possible? Would that not serve you better, Minister? And then you could maybe reach your climate action targets of 8,000 hectares. Because it's totally hypocritical to stand up here and dictate to us and then have an advisory council on climate to dictate. We're not going to accept it. Not now, not ever.
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