Air Pollution (Amendment) Bill 2025: Committee Stage
Seanad Éireann — 2026-01-28
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Timmy Dooley (FF), Clare

I can absolutely give the Senator assurance that there is nothing in this legislation or in the amendment to the original legislation that will have any impact on the homeowner or will put any extra responsibility or burden on them or open up any legal route to penalise them for how they heat their homes. That is a stated fact. However in the future for those residents, the local authorities are engaged and Government funding is being provided on an ongoing basis. We have very significant targets in terms of the number of homes which must be retrofitted to reduce our CO2 emissions in line with our 2030 targets, onwards to 2040 and beyond to get to net zero by 2050.
We are adamant that we will get there. There are two streams for the State to do that, the first of which involves commercial and residential properties that are in the ownership of the State, including State buildings like Leinster House. The State is very clear that it has an obligation to upgrade both residential stock and State-owned properties, which it is doing and will continue to do. On the domestic side, the State cannot carry all of the burden when it comes to privately owned facilities but very significant supports are provided through the SEAI for deep retrofits. A lot of that involves using insulation or using a different methodology for the heat source. It is about getting an airtight entity first and then using heat pumps as a means of removing any use of fossil fuels to heat the home. Earlier this week the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, announced a new suite of grants which aim to assist people who would not have the wherewithal to do a full deep retrofit, which in the current climate would probably cost €60,000 to €80,000. The Minister is now providing supports for homes that could ultimately get to a standard of airtightness that would be able to accommodate a heat pump. He is going to provide financial support through grants for the replacement of windows and doors. That will have a very significant impact in getting people on the journey towards retrofitting their homes on a staged basis rather than all at once.
Regarding the tenants Senator Andrews talked about who are in large, multi-unit facilities, that is the responsibility of the local authority. I know there is engagement between the Department and the local authority. I am sure the Senator, through his office, may be able to put some pressure on the local authority. I will happily engage with him, if he wants, and we will see how we can assist in that. That is something the Government is very clear on. Local authority stock must be brought up to a very significant standard in terms of reducing the use of fossil fuels and bringing it to a level of airtightness which, when it is done, will have the impact of reducing the burden of cost on those who wish to have some quality of life in a home that is fit for purpose and warm in the first instance.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2026-01-28/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:33+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-01-28