Issue 625

The Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Michael McGrath, T.D. has welcomed the publication of the Organisation for Economic Development (OECD) Survey on the Drivers of Trust in Public Institutions.

Ireland is one of 22 countries that participated in the 2021 survey which was part-funded by the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform. The survey was carried out on behalf of Ireland by the Central Statistics Office. This broad-ranging international survey examines trust levels, satisfaction with public services, expectations and behaviour along with action on long-term policies and global challenges.

Trust in national government is however relatively low on average across OECD countries with local Government and civil servants faring slightly better. In addition, a majority of respondents trust the courts and the police in their country while support is relatively low for political parties, legislative institutions and the media. Survey outcomes for Ireland demonstrate real level of confidence in our public institutions with 67% for An Garda and 65% for the Courts and Legal System, while a 62% trust score in Civil Servants compares well with the OECD average of 50%.

In addition:

• 80% of Irish respondents believe that information they need regarding administrative procedures is easily available, which is a very positive figure and compares well with the 22 countries that participated in the survey and a 65% OECD average figure.
• 76% of respondents believe that their application for a Government benefit or service would be treated fairly which was higher than the other participating countries and the overall average of 70%.
• 65% respondents believe that personal data they share with a public agency is exclusively used for legitimate purposes, which was significantly above the other participating countries and the OECD average figure of 50%.
• 58% of respondents believe that Government institutions will be prepared to protect people’s lives in the event of a new pandemic, which is exceeded by Denmark and Luxembourg, with the average OECD figure of 50%.
• 42% of respondents believe that public employees would treat rich and poor equally which matches the average OECD figure with the highest outcome in Denmark and the Netherlands at 58%.

Read more.

This week on PAI's blog, Trainer Tom Ferris discussed climate change and environmental impact assessments:

"The current EU Directive for Environmental Impact Assessments contains specific references to mitigating the impact of climate change. It now?requires?EIAs to include a description of the significant effects of projects on the environment resulting from, inter alia – “the impact of the project on climate (for example the nature and magnitude of greenhouse gas emissions) and the vulnerability of the project to climate change.”?. The requirement is also part of Irish legislation, following the transposition of the EU Directive into Irish law in May 2020. In turn, the specific steps to be taken in developing EIA Reports are spelt out in revised guidelines published in May 2022 by the Environmental Protection Agency. These guidelines are entitled ‘Guidelines on the information to be contained in Environmental Impact Assessment Reports.’ They are intended to be an authoritative reference for those preparing reports for projects covered by the legislation. The?introduction to the guidelines?states that – “The Guidelines have been updated following the introduction of transposing legislation and are now formally adopted and published by the Environmental Protection Agency.”

Read?the full blog here.

Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications, Eamon Ryan TD, has welcomed the Government decision to join the EU Integrated Carbon Observation System – European Research Infrastructure Consortium (ICOS-ERIC or ICOS). This will enable the State to consolidate and develop high-quality scientific climate measurements, so that we can manage our greenhouse gas budgets more effectively.

ICOS consists of a network of greenhouse gas measurement sites across Europe, currently in 14 countries, with Ireland to be the fifteenth. It produces high-precision, long-term scientific greenhouse gas measurements at each site. These climate observations help to improve our understanding of greenhouse gas emissions sources and their uptake by so-called carbon sinks in our forests, soils and seas. The observations also give insights into the human and natural causes of both emissions and sinks, and provide the knowledge and evidence base to inform climate policy to more effectively manage our national carbon budgets.

As part of this process the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will be designated as the ICOS National Focal Point to co-ordinate and manage Ireland’s engagement with the network. The EPA will link activities (and related research) in Ireland with activities across the ICOS network and will contribute to the overall governance and development of the network.

Read more here.

The Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications, Eamon Ryan TD, today launched the Call for Expert Evidence 2022. This call seeks evidence-based responses and submissions from experts, research organisations and other such groups/individuals that work in areas relating to climate, environment and energy.

These responses and submissions will help to support and inform the process being undertaken to prepare Climate Action Plan 2023, which is due to be published later this year.

The Call for Expert Evidence forms part of the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communication’s?Climate Conversation 2022,?which invites people from all over the country to have their say on how we can all play our part in securing our sustainable future.

Read more here.