Michael McCarthy (Cork South West, Labour)
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We will discuss COM (2012) 710 - proposal for decision of the European Parliament and of the Council on the General Union Environment Action Programme to 2020, Living Well Within the Limits of our Planet, with officials from the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government. I welcome from the Department Mr. Pat Macken, principal officer, Environment, International and Sustainable Development; Mr. Brendan O'Neill, senior adviser; and Mr. Fintan O'Connell, Presidency team. I thank the gentlemen for attending.

I draw the witnesses' attention to the fact that, by virtue of section 17(2)(l ) of the Defamation Act 2009, witnesses are protected by absolute privilege in respect of their evidence to the joint committee. However, if you are directed by the committee to cease giving evidence on a particular matter and continue to do so, you are entitled thereafter only to qualified privilege in respect of your evidence. You are directed that only evidence connected with the subject matter of these proceedings is to be given and you are asked to respect the parliamentary practice to the effect that, where possible, you should not criticise or make charges against a person, persons or an entity by name or in such a way as to make him, her or it identifiable.

Members are reminded of the long-standing parliamentary practice to the effect that they should not comment on, criticise or make charges against a person outside the Houses or an official by name or in such a way as to make him or her identifiable.

Before commencing with the presentation I wish to make some brief remarks. The environment action programmes have guided the development of EU environmental policy since 1971. They provided a systematic approach in terms of tackling environmental issues. They identified priorities, set targets and highlighted the need to integrate environmental policies with other policies.

The 6th Environmental Action Programme, which ended in 2012, worked towards establishing a framework for environmental policy within which a wide range of environmental legislation was consolidated and completed. That covered a wide number of areas with the exception of one important issue, namely, soil.

The question remains as to how committed are individual member states in terms of implementing the provisions of the environmental action programmes. That is an area that must be addressed in the context of the 7th Environmental Action Programme being considered.

I have been advised that the 7th Environmental Action Programme is more strategic in nature than the sixth. I have been advised also that it sets out different priority objectives to be attained. It is a very welcome development and I am interested in hearing today the way the Minister and the Department intend to meet those challenges and attain the priority objectives set within it. It is also an interesting time given that we hold the Presidency for the first six months of this year. It would be a nice legacy, in terms of Ireland's footprint on future European environmental policy, to have that issue dealt with constructively and, hopefully, before the Presidency concludes. I call Mr. Macken to address the committee.