The Irish Green Building Council (IGBC) launched today its Pre-Budget submission for Budget 2023. The document sets out a series of recommendations to decarbonise Ireland’s built environment, while addressing the housing crisis and rising energy costs.
Pat Barry, CEO at the Irish Green Building Council said: “Climate change, the housing crisis and energy costs are some of the most prominent challenges facing our society. In times of climate emergency, it’s critical that all government expenditure and fiscal policies align with the objective of reaching carbon neutrality by 2050. In the built environment, focusing on this objective would also facilitate the delivery of new homes, while contributing positively to tackling fuel poverty”.
The IGBC’s submission includes a number of recommendations to support a better use of the existing stock, energy renovation and the development of sustainable new homes.
Mr Barry explained that the carbon cost of a home deep retrofit is approximately 25% of that of new build.
“As many of these homes are in central locations, people would be less reliant on cars, which in turn would reduce Ireland’s fastest growing source of carbon emissions, transport. This approach also represents a unique opportunity to provide much needed homes, and to make our city, town, and village centres more vibrant, while restoring the cultural and aesthetic value of these areas”.
Mr Barry added that the IGBC welcomes the launch of the Croí Cónaithe (Towns) Fund Scheme but is proposing further actions. For instance, retrofit grants and tax incentives must be better connected to schemes supporting reuse. The application process must be simplified, and all these grants and financial mechanisms must better complement each other to support town centre first, compact growth and carbon emissions reduction objectives.
The IGBC is saying that too often building owners simply don’t know what to do or where to start when it comes to energy renovation. Mr Barry explained that the current 23% VAT rate on professional services discourages building owners from getting professional advice.
“A 9% VAT on professional services for retrofits and on construction products which contribute to carbon savings would support quality renovation, while providing an additional incentive to retrofit”.
When it comes to new build, Mr Barry said the government must lead by example: “Where government invests in housing through grant aid or procurement these developments must adhere to higher sustainability requirements. This can be achieved through green building certifications such as the Home Performance Index or equivalent, as it’s already done in Germany for all projects funded by the state-owned investment and development bank, KfW”.
The Irish Green Building Council’s pre-budget submission was developed in close cooperation with its members and is available here.