Ms Laura Burke:

We have not discussed this but the risk in setting up a separate, stand-alone body is that everyone will think, "that Department over there will be responsible." With regard to climate and broader environmental issues, we need them to be integrated - "infiltrated" would be another way of describing it - into all the Departments. Then, for any decision, whether it was being made in the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine or Transport, Tourism and Sport or whatever other Department, climate would be taken into consideration. There is a risk that by separating it out, we would be absolving the other Departments of responsibility.

With regard to setting up an independent body, the other thing that needs to be taken into consideration is that there is already oversight at EU level. We have commitments there and if we do not meet them there will be repercussions for our EU compliance. How they would fit in and be aligned is a question that would need to be asked.

On agriculture, Professor FitzGerald mentioned the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, IPCC. We had 100 scientists from across the world in Dublin last week looking at the IPCC report on agriculture and land use. The chairman of the IPCC also attended and one of the things he was saying to the group was that although over the last 30 years the IPCC has focused very much on the science of climate change and the issues, it is now moving its focus to some of the solutions. That is a really interesting change of dynamic. We now all know the issues and there has been great work done in bringing attention to them. It is really important to have that expertise from across the world looking at solutions.