Denis Duggan

After much anticipation the Northern Ireland Draft Programme for Government (PfG) for the period 2024-2027 entitled, Our Plan: Doing What Matters Most, has been published for consultation until 4th November 2024. The document puts some more detail around the nine priority areas announced by the Executive last week and every project and programme has a direct link back to at least one of the core missions of people, planet and prosperity with the cross cutting mission of peace. There is a lot of information in the draft PfG to digest and analyse for its potential impact and I have no doubt that our dairy sector will be up for working with Ministers and their Departments to deliver on key priorities. It is noteworthy that the draft PfG references the interconnectedness between food, health, the economy and the environment. Within the Dairy Council for Northern Ireland we will review and respond to the consultation and, whilst it is clear that availability of additional funding will be key to unlocking transformational actions such as achieving net zero commitments and driving up economic productivity, there is much that can be done with existing resources to support the sustainable development of our agri-food sector.

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Today, Fine Gael launched our manifesto for #GE24, setting out our stall in how we will continue to invest in our economy & provide for our people, putting money back in your pocket, improving public services & securing your future to deal with unforeseen events. More here 👉 finegael.ie/manifesto

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The Food Vision 2030 Strategy aims to position Ireland as a global leader in sustainable food systems, benefiting the agri-food sector, society and the environment over the next decade. In my article ‘Utilusing data and sustainable food systems for 2030’, you can read about sustainable IT, Agtech and how data is being used to assess, monitor and identify significant environmental effects arising from the implementation of Food Vision 2030.

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Final Call to Join Bord na Móna’s Accelerate Green Programme. If you are an Irish Start-Up with a sustainable solution, or an SME looking to pivot into sustainability and ready to scale, consider Bord na Móna’s Accelerate Green programme. It is Ireland’s leading sustainability accelerator and we’re making a final call for innovative founders keen to make a lasting impact on our environment to join the 2025 cohort. This unique programme offers mentorship, expert guidance and invaluable connections with industry leaders, all aimed at empowering green businesses to scale and thrive. For more information and to submit your application, click here: www.accelerategreen.ie  Read the full article: https://lnkd.in/eu6KjNed Elaine Negi, Nicola McDaniel, Resolve Partners, Angela Duffy MBA PhD, Alan Costello, David Scanlon, Mona Nezamivand, MBA #AccelerateGreen #Sustainability #Innovation #BordnaMóna #ireland 

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Have you registered for the last Climate Pact Learn and Share Lunch Talk Webinar set to hold on 25th July 2024, 13:00 – 14:00? Key speakers will be exploring the theme, ‘Climate Adaptation and Disaster Relief Planning’. You’ll agree with Met Éireann that the average rainfall in Ireland has increased by 7%. It’s therefore important to keep abreast of these conversations, know the most recent facts and what measures to take. Register here today for free: https://bit.ly/3W36sIA #EUClimatePact #MyWorldOurPlanet #climate #ClimateActionNow #ClimateAction #climatecrisis EU Environment and Climate

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Last week a senior group from the OECD visited Foynes as part of a review of Irish Rural Development Policy. On behalf of the Shannon Estuary Economic Taskforce, I provided a brief perspective on the current situation in ‘regional’ Ireland and the potential for the future. Before that, Margaret O'Shaughnessy, gave us a tour of the Fying Boat Museum. Margaret is one of the most impressive people I have ever met. Its nothing short of amazing what she has achieved over the last 35 years. I highly recommend visiting - both for work and pleasure. She has a conference room and excellent catering facilities, an ideal place to host an offsite meeting for your Team. For the OECD Review, the facts are clear: 1) The hundreds of years old trend continues, people continue to migrate east to Dublin for better prospects. 2) Over half our students leave the region on graduation. third level education is in crisis, colleges are attracting significant numbers of students directly from abroad for money, and dropout rates of local students have increased significantly due to lack of accomodation, cost of living, teaching support etc. 3) IDA Ireland has made a significant impact in providing jobs in regions, but they cannot solve this alone. 4) Per Eurostat, the infrastructure in our region is 50% of the EU average, in the Midlands/NW its just 34%, Dublin 115%. 5) Irish Green policy, now part of Irish government policy, halved the proportion of transport spending on roads. To date, we are denied ring roads and bypasses around regional cities and towns or a motorway connecting our second and third biggest, Cork and Limerick. Rural roads are in an appalling state. 6) Irish Green policy also prohibits the provision of energy security for imported natural gas supply, in stark contrast to the German Green Leader, Robert Habeck, who has opened multiple new LNG facilities there in the last 2 years. However, it is clear that Irish Government Energy policy, heavily weighted towards renewables, will not achieve its targets for 2030 or 2040, due to the lack of a detailed Plan, and this will have a detrimental impact on the economy, but much more on rural regions than the capital. 7) Major international tech investors, key contributors to Ireland over the last 30 years, are now investing heavily elsewhere due to lack of power and basic infrastructure. 8) Regional towns, cities and villages are often limited in their capacity to expand due to lack of water, wastewater, electricity etc. We need significant and sustained investment in Ireland’s regions to enable equality of opportunity for all, regardless of where they live on this Island. It is not sustainable to be in the most peripheral region in the EU with 50% of the average infrastructure and expect to live happily ever after. The big opportunity is to start harvesting the Atlantic wind to provide green and secure energy for Europe, but we must start now. We need many more people like Margaret O'Shaughnessy

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Bord na Móna Accelerate Green Start Programme is designed to support the growth of sustainable businesses and drive innovation in green industries. Read more about how we’re helping businesses make a positive environmental impact. Check out the full article here: https://lnkd.in/eBUErtSU Elaine Negi, Resolve Partners #Sustainability #BordnaMóna #AccelerateGreen #AG25 #GreenBusiness #ClimateAction

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June has again delivered unacceptably low levels of afforestation licensing. Since the new programme was implemented, the department has yet to come within 20% of the target pace even once, failing Irish farmers and landowners.  Just 808 hectares have been planted so far this year. With every month that they fail to issue sufficient licences, we further increase the time it will take to reach our planting targets.  Urgent reforms are crucial to revive the forestry sector. We must improve planting incentives, streamline licensing processes, and review the forestry programme immediately to prevent 2025 from becoming another wasted year. #SEEFA #SaveIrishForestry

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Climate Action Plan 2024 (CAP24) aims to put Ireland back on track to achieve its 2030 goals. Our guide will help you understand CAP24 and how it will impact your business. Discover more here https://ow.ly/Wsuo50StQSW

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UL's Mary Curtin PhD discusses the need for a national land ownership strategy in the Irish Farmers Journal #tax #farming #ireland https://lnkd.in/ebjA4TTX

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Encouraging to see the recovery of the overall Irish drinks sector with exports increasing by 19% despite the highly competitive international markets and strong economic headwinds in 2024. The export value of our industry now stands at €2.1 billion with these Irish products sold in 113 markets worldwide. Beer exports continued their recovery growing by 2% to reach around €325 million and are now 9% ahead of 2022 levels, and Cider exports again increased in value, reaching €80 million in export earnings. Drinks Ireland continues to emphasise the importance of increased investment through state agencies such as Bord Bia and Enterprise Ireland to support the export growth ambition of the sector and looks forward to working with the new Government, state agencies and its members on export market development, diversification, and product innovation. #DrinksIndustry #Exports #PrideofPlace

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Ireland’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan Annual Event 2024 took place yesterday, Thursday 11 July, at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin. DECC and Bord na Móna showcased the Enhanced Decommissioning, Rehabilitation, Restoration Scheme to the attendees including Minister for Public Expenditure, NDP delivery & Reform Pascal Donohoe, Minister for Finance Jack Chambers, Minister of State with responsibility for the OPW Kieran O’Donnell, and Deputy Director General for Economic and Financial Affairs Declan Costello. Through the support of the NRRP, the Scheme will rehabilitate almost 33,000 hectares covering over 80 of Ireland’s peatlands following the cessation of the extraction of peat. The Scheme has been developed to optimise ecosystem service benefits of peatland rehabilitation and restoration, particularly carbon storage and reducing carbon emissions. The move from the extraction of peat to the restoration and rehabilitation of peatlands is part of Ireland’s just transition to a more sustainable future. Read more: https://www.bnmpcas.ie/ #NextGenerationEU

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How to invest for an ageing population. The key sectors set to benefit: The Irish population is ageing - that presents opportunities for savvy investors https://lnkd.in/eNW-kzs5

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Tapping into the #bioeconomy potential of #grass. Growing grass is one of Ireland's natural competitive advantages which is now set to be a key ingredient in Ireland's emerging biomethane and bioeconomy sectors. https://lnkd.in/e4cZ7NXG

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Webinar today 1pm. where we will be focusing on the governance failures of the Irish State Broadcaster - RTE, with Co Founder and Chair of The Corporate Governance Institute, David W Duffy. Join us for this webinar to understand the important role that you can play in improving governance on a board. Register now to secure your place: Register now: https://lnkd.in/evbs6pSx #CorporateGovernance #Leadership #Webinar

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How is solar energy shaping up in Ireland? Get the latest trends. 🌞

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