Marcella Corcoran Kennedy (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

It is interesting to hear what the Minister and his officials are planning for the Council meeting. In regard to the plastic bag levy, I welcome that the Minister will fight our corner given the amount of work we have done in this regard. If we were put on the same level as other countries which have not achieved as much as us and asked to achieve a blanket 50% reduction, it would be unfair on us. However, we must not be complacent because people easily revert to their old habits.

I ask the Minister to clarify the Lithuanian Presidency's plans for renewable resources in regard to land use and the impact its focus on biofuels will have on carbon emissions. I welcome his comments on the work we have done over the summer on the heads of the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Bill 2013. I hope he will take on board much of what we have proposed. We had a constructive engagement on the Bill and there is strong interest in its provisions.

Will the Council be examining the various public awareness campaigns being conducted in other countries on climate change and its potential impact on societies? I have been following the discussions on infrastructure development but I fear this topic is being lost. I am concerned that the eye is off the ball in terms of public discourse. How successful have we been in spreading the message about the challenges we face in maintaining energy security and meeting our responsibilities that are suffering because of climate change?