Mr. Mark Griffin:

I will take up the Deputy's first point about my description of the current governance arrangements.

On the question about to how to mandate action, the Government is at the top of the pyramid of all the things I have described. As for the arrangements that are in place, I mentioned a group of senior officials on infrastructure and climate action, a Cabinet committee on infrastructure and climate action, and the high-level group that the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment, Deputy Naughten, chairs. This group specifically monitors delivery of the national mitigation plan and looks at what is happening in the national adaptation framework, at progress being made on the 12 sectoral plans spread across several Departments, and considers inputs from the Climate Change Advisory Council as well as inputs from the Departments at various stages of the year in relation to resource requirements. For climate action, we fed into the development of the national development plan which has been approved by Government as the key underpinning document for delivering a substantial investment under the national development plan of approximately €22 billion in climate measures and approximately €8.6 billion in sustainable development.

We work closely across Government. There is a myth that has permeated that Departments operate in silos, but that is not the case at all. We work closely with colleagues at all levels in our organisations to ensure what the Government commits to achieving under a programme for Government, a national plan or a national mitigation plan, is delivered. I struggle to see what a new or existing independent body would do over and above the structures that are there and that are clearly mandated by Government, which we are accountable to Government for delivering on.