Speech on Act on CO2 advertising campaign motion

Speech by David Ford MLA delivered to Northern Ireland Assembly on Tue 24th Mar 2009

Supporting the motion in the Assembly on the Act on CO2 Advertising Campaign, David Ford MLA said: "My colleagues and I will support the motion as amended because of the words that appear on the Order Paper, not because of any oratory powers or scientific persuasion from the Members who proposed the motion or those who tabled the amendment.

"It seems to me, as Stephen Farry made the point during a debate this morning, that there is something rather ridiculous in the fact that Members who had nothing to say during the debate on the draft Renewables Obligation Order can devote time to this sort of private Member's motion."

Some Members: "Hear, hear."

David Ford: "This place's name is supposed to refer to its status as a legislative Assembly, not as a debating society. It is sad that more Members are in the House at this stage to take part in a debating society than were present when serious legislation was being discussed by a Minister from the DUP Benches who seems to have a greater understanding of the issues than her successor as the Minister of the Environment."

The Minister of the Environment: "I thank the Member for giving way. Mr McClarty talked about the importance of renewable energy to the economy, and so on. However, when the Minister of Enterprise, Trade and Investment was in the Chamber, Mr McClarty - and I think he was present - did not have a word to say about the matter. Perhaps no one had written a script for him on that."

Mr Deputy Speaker: "The Member has an extra minute."

David Ford: "I would not want to be too embarrassed by agreeing too much with the Minister, so I will leave that issue hanging.

"It seems that the Minister's performance during his time in office has amounted to a continual statement that he does what he is obliged to do. Indeed, he probably does. I do not believe that he could ever be got under the ministerial code for not doing what he is obliged to do.

"The problem is that a Minister who does the minimum that he is obliged to do, and then speaks against the spirit of the Programme for Government's undertakings to reduce CO2 emissions, does not seem to be providing the leadership that we are entitled to. That is my major concern with the way in which he is carrying out his actions.

"As Senator Pat Moynihan might have said, Sammy Wilson is entitled to his opinions but he is not entitled to his own facts. The facts, as understood by the overwhelming majority of opinion, are quite clear. I hope that when the Minister responds to the debate he will remember to give me the figure that he could not provide in the Environment Committee - it was how much CO2 I have saved by using my Translink SmartPass throughout this year, compared to the emissions that I might have caused had I been using a car."

The Minister of the Environment: "I am sure that the Member is dying to hear what his carbon footprint is. According to the number of miles for which the Member claimed travel expenses last year, he generated 1·4 tons of carbon. That is considerably less than other Committee members; however, had he used his SmartPass continuously, he could have reduced that amount by 75% to 0·36 tons. He still has a long way to go."

David Ford: "I note that the Minister is not capable of answering the question that I asked him, which was how much I had saved, but he got his cheap jag in anyway.

"The issue was raised about whether DECC was attempting to impose its particular set of English advertisements on Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The Minister told us that the Scots, and now the Welsh, have rejected the DECC advertisements and are doing their own thing. However, that is the fundamental difference between the Scots, the Welsh, and this Minister - as yet we have seen no advertising campaign from the DOE on the matter.

"It may well be that simply concentrating on switching off the standby button was not of a high enough standard for Sammy Wilson to allow his Department to approve the advertisement. The question then is this: if he is going to maintain that argument, what advertisements will we see? That is why it is vital that we see real action across the entire Executive, and not just on an advertising campaign. Climate change is a cross-departmental issue, yet it seems to be going unrecognised.

"If we are going to deal seriously with climate change, it must be looked at by the entire Executive. Different Departments have responsibilities, whether it is for energy efficiency, renewable energy - as we discussed earlier - the warm homes scheme, or for greater incentives to use public transport. All those are vital necessities, and they require action across the entire range of Executive Departments. This does not merely involve the question of whether a particular form of advertisement is shown.

"Earlier this morning, the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Investment, when debating the draft Renewables Obligations Order (Northern Ireland) 2009, sought to defend the approach of the Executive and spoke about various things that were happening on a cross-departmental basis. However, it seems to me that those actions are extremely thin on the ground. There may be discussions among Ministers and small groups of officials, but virtually nothing is being rolled out - at a time when initiatives on the green economy are being flagged up by President Obama in particular, and when action is taking place in other parts of the UK and in other countries in Europe. There is nothing to show that there is real, consistent, coherent action taking place here.

"We have heard about the difficulties in getting renewable energy from wind power under way under PPS 18. There is a range of things not being carried through across the entire range of Executive responsibilities. If the Minister is going to tell us that he is refusing to have the actions of the DECC imposed on him, but that he is doing better himself, it seems to me that he and his colleagues have a great deal of explaining to do."

Original Motion: "That this Assembly notes with concern the attempt by the Minister of the Environment to block the Department of Energy and Climate Change advertising campaign Act on CO2; further notes that the position is contrary to the targets set out in the Programme for Government to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 25% below 1990 levels by 2025; and calls on the Minister of the Environment to remove his opposition to the Act on CO2 advertising campaign."

Amendment: At end insert "; and, mindful of the Environment Committee's vote of no confidence in the Minister of the Environment, calls on the Executive to launch a cross-departmental advertising campaign on climate change aimed at achieving the Programme for Government environmental protection targets."