Mr. Jim Clarken:

I will try to cover some of the questions that have not been addressed. Deputy Eric Byrne referred to the situation in Ethiopia, which is a major concern for us all. That country has made tremendous strides in the past ten, 15 or 20 years, but the whole region is now facing a food crisis. We must ensure Ethiopia is supported now, when it is struggling, after a period of doing so well. We all recall the darkest days for the country and how far it has progressed. The situation in Ethiopia is a watching brief and we are working with partners there to see what can be done. Of course, Ethiopia is affected by the conflict in South Sudan. There is a regional issue that needs to be addressed, with a greater focus on pushing the parties involved to come to a resolution.

The population question is something of a perennial for some of us, specifically in the context of climate impact. To respond in a personal way, I have three children under the age of five and it is fair to say they probably have already used more carbon than their counterparts in developing countries. Certainly, through the course of their lifetimes, they will, with the best efforts of their parents and our society, use multiples of what people in developing countries use. It is the parents and grandparents of children in Ireland today, and previous generations, who are the cause of the climate impact on countries like Ethiopia, not the Ethiopian people themselves or the fact that more Ethiopian children are being born. There is an inevitability in terms of where the population trajectory is heading in the next 20 or 25 years. We can do nothing about that but we must push for better levels of education in developing countries, particularly for girls and women. We need to ensure girls stay in school longer, space their children better and have fewer of them. There is nothing more definite than that when one has middle classes in a society, people will have smaller, better educated and more protected families. It is really about the need for poverty alleviation rather than blaming population increases. That is an important message to get across.

In his analysis of the threat of nuclear power, Senator Mark Daly wondered whose lives will be saved and whose will not. Those are very strong lines and I am glad the Senator is using them because that is how serious this issue is. As Senator Michael Mullins said, for some reason we have not quite captured that imagination yet. There is a great deal of activity going on in this area. For example, a large protest march is planned for Paris and a stepping up of public engagement. Many of us have been engaging with the public on these issues for years. Lots of people, for several generations, have been hugely passionate about them, and more and more are taking the concerns on board. People are joining the dots and getting more involved. The flip side to this is that action requires leadership as opposed to followership, which in turn requires courage and doing things even if they are not yet on the popular agenda. It is a question of working together to find out what we can do to mobilise people and how we can collectively ensure they are fully engaged.

Deputy Olivia Mitchell spoke about Ireland's share or part in bringing about change. It is about equity, fairness and justice. Nobody is asking Ireland to do any more than what is proportionate to its share. During the worst of the economic crisis, the aid budget was cut by 35% or so. In the past five years, however, it was more or less kept steady. That required political leadership, and we should give credit where it is due. The public was not clamouring for the level of aid to be retained but the political leadership decided it was important enough to do. Equally, this is important enough to do and it requires that kind of leadership. I am absolutely convinced the public will come along with us on this. People are becoming more and more aware of the impact climate change is having not just somewhere far away but in our own country today, in the course of their lifetime and in their children's lifetime. That is something we need to work on together.