Mr. Brian Carroll:

I thank Senator Higgins for the questions. In terms of what Ireland needs to do to hit its targets, the starting point - the previous contributor raised this issue as well - is based on average emissions from 2016 to 2018. Ireland's starting point will be on its average emissions over that period.

In terms of Ireland being behind, we are behind in terms of our 2020 target. Against a 20% reduction, according to latest forecasts, we are likely to reduce by between 2% and 4% by 2020. However, if the 2019 climate action plan were fully implemented, in terms of our existing climate target which will be revised upwards and is a 30% reduction, it would have us reach and slightly exceed that target.

In terms of what Ireland needs to do, currently the intention is not to have every member state reduce its emissions by at least 55% by 2030 - it is to have the EU as a whole reduce its emissions. The architecture for how that will be achieved is not designed. I will not go back through it, but there are proposals on the table regarding the expansion of the emissions trading system, ETS; and regarding putting non-CO2 emissions, particularly agricultural emissions, into a particular pot with land use, land use change and forestry. It is not yet clear how they will interact with what we currently regard as non-ETS, where we have an effort-sharing regulation and where the legally binding obligation falls on the State. It would not be our expectation that Ireland would be expected to reduce, in its non-ETS as currently constituted, by 55% by 2030. That will be divvied up among member states to try and achieve the fairest and most cost-effective reduction of at least 55% for the EU as a whole.

In terms of the ambition in the programme for Government-----