Taking the Fast Track to Nowhere (originally published on Indymedia.ie October 2010)
In its desperate
attempts save money our government seems to be taking backward steps instead
of moving forward in a progressive way that will prepare the country for inevitable
changes. In the last few weeks I’ve become aware of moves to cut the country’s
forestry investment, a short sighted move that may save money in the short term
but will have long term repercussions for Ireland. Instead of trying to emulate
countries like Finland that have a successful and sustainable forestry industry,
the government has opted to starve the fledgling forestry industry of funds,
which will mean that forestry and spin-off industries like bio-mass energy will
be negatively affected.
In addition to this the government has axed the subsidy on E85 which has in
turn led to the main forecourt seller (Maxol) withdrawing from the market. Having
invested heavily in this fuel, which is taking off in other European countries,
I imagine that Maxol and Emo (the other main seller) are rightly furious with
the government. The knock on effect of this is that suppliers of conversion
kits will go out of business, those who have converted their cars or own the
new flexi-fuel cars will most likely have to return to using petrol. In addition
to this, the Irish E85 producers that make it from whey (a by-product from Irish
cheese making) will either have to find export markets for their E85 or go out
of business. Further bad news is that as a result of this decision the government
will struggle to hit its EU targets for biofuel usage, petrol usage and hence
pollution will increase and tax revenue from E85 related business will undoubtedly
drop off.
This is a typical case of the mouth saying one thing and the hands doing something
completely different. The government has made a commitment to protecting the
environment and taking steps towards preparing the country for the transition
into a post-oil global economy, however the reality is very different from the
hyperbole.
This recent debacle reminds me of Bertie Ahern’s promises of a vibrant
Ireland on the leading edge of technology - this promise was never delivered
on and in reality Ireland is still a bit of a joke in comparison the rest of
Europe. What technological investment that has been made here was mostly from
outside and has been quick to leave again as cheaper options appeared on the
horizon. What was needed was home grown investment, home grown R&D and utilization
of Ireland’s educated and innovative people.
Ireland was bypassed by the industrial revolution, through no fault of its own,
but it has never really tried to catch up in the way other countries around
the world have done. Ireland missed the rise of the automotive industry, it
has failed to capitalize on it’s agriculture industry in the way that
the Netherlands has done, or forestry as the Scandinavians have done, it failed
to become the European IT Hub and with the current fools at the helm it will
fail to become a leading light in the emerging green energy and biotechnology
industries.
Ireland is not lacking in resources, even if it is lacking a large population
or large budgets. Other small countries have succeeded in developing niche markets
and areas of specialization so why can’t Ireland do so? I believe it is
a question of leadership – our government (and most of the opposition)
looks after itself and its business friends; it has no vision and no real interest
in the long-term future of its citizens. What Ireland needs is a revolution
in thinking that goes beyond the tired political dynamic that still lingers
from the beginnings of the Irish republic. We need new people, political reform
and perhaps new political parties; without a major shift that encourages innovation
and vision to prosper then our best and brightest will continue to leave and
the country will accelerate on its current course – the fast track to
nowhere.