Dr. Yamina Saheb:

In theory, what was known in 2019 before the negotiations on modernisation started was that regarding the amended treaty the EU, representing member states, had a mandate from the European Council to negotiate on behalf of the member states. I guess there is an Irish representative in these negotiations, as representatives from all the member states attend. Those representatives attend meetings, but it is the EU that talks on behalf of all 27 member states. Then, if an agreement is reached, what will happen is that the treaty should be ratified at the same time by the European Parliament and by the national parliaments. I do not see, for example, how some of the European national parliaments could ratify a treaty that keeps protections for fossil fuels. What this means in practice is that if our parliaments do not ratify the amended treaty, then it will be necessary to have two thirds of the contracting parties ratify the amended treaty to allow it to be implemented. It is very difficult to reach this two thirds proportion of governments.

What is happening now in the context of modernisation is that an attempt is being made to find a way to avoid an amendment being made to the treaty. I do not know if it is possible for the legal experts to find a way to avoid an amendment, but if it proved possible then it would not be necessary for the national parliaments to ratify the agreement. This is what has happened in the past. Changes were made in the transit articles of the treaty and that did not need an amendment to be made by national parliaments. That is all I have to say by way of clarification. Something to keep in mind for the Irish Parliament is how it would explain to citizens that it is ratifying a treaty that continues to provide protections for fossil fuels. What it means overall is that in the meantime the current treaty remains as it is.