EV Experts: Climate Action Plan Shows Irish Government Isn’t Serious About Vehicle Emissions

Press release -05/11/21

EV Experts: Climate Action Plan Shows Irish Government Isn’t Serious About Vehicle Emissions

Following the publication of the Climate Action Plan 2021 yesterday, electric vehicle experts have expressed their concerns about the lack of ambition contained in the document, and warn that it puts Ireland on a path to increased energy poverty.

The Plan, which aims to set a roadmap for taking decisive action to halve Ireland’s emissions by 2030 and reach net zero emissions no later than 2050, as per the coalition’s Programme for Government.

In terms of electric vehicles, the Climate Action Plan 2021 commits to the creation of a dedicated Office of Low Emitting Vehicles to offer advice on EVs, as well as continued support for the expansion of the nation’s EV charging network, among other things.

However, it has been criticised by electric vehicle experts for having too many vague promises and failures to commit to any deadlines for action, some three years after the Government declared a Climate Emergency.

Tom Spencer, Editor of consumer advice website IrishEVs, said: “The Irish Government is continuing to conflate battery electric vehicles (BEVS) with hybrid vehicles in the Climate Action Plan 2021, which is incredibly alarming, as the latter are entirely reliant on the use of fossil fuels – and their continued extraction.”

“Hybrid vehicles are just internal combustion engine cars in disguise, and carry the same consequences for the Climate Crisis and public health. Conflating the two raises serious questions about the validity of the data that the Irish Government is using to calculate its emissions cuts”

The Climate Action Plan 2021 makes reference to there being over 45,000 electric vehicles on Irish roads today. This data, sourced from the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland includes both battery electric vehicles – which are fully electric and can be run on renewable energy – as well as hybrid vehicles, which require fossil fuels.

The Irish Government has committed to banning the sale of new internal combustion engine vehicles by 2030, but there is currently a lack of transparency about whether this will include hybrid vehicles. Although incentives for plug-in hybrids are due to be removed in 2022.

Mr Spencer continues: “The Plan solely focuses on the sale of new BEVs, and makes no mention of supporting second-hand electric vehicles. The poor incentives on offer today have led to slower adoption of BEVs in Ireland compared to other nations with greater incentives. This has resulted in a concerning lack of affordable BEVs for the average person – and with necessary increases in carbon taxing, we are facing a future where low income families will experience greater energy poverty.”

“If the Irish Government is serious about tackling vehicle emissions, it must remove VAT and VRT from second-hand BEV imports from the UK to ensure there are enough affordable electric vehicles to meet the already significant demand. This is critical to a just transition here in Ireland.”

The Irish Government has committed to a €9.5bn increase in carbon tax receipts by 2030, as part of its strategy to cut carbon emissions, as per the Paris Climate Agreement.

Cutting road transport emissions is an important focus for the Irish Government ahead of its 2030 targets. Each year Irish cars emit around 6 million tonnes of CO2, which equates to double the carbon dioxide emissions created by Irish flights annually.