Trevor Sargent (Dublin North, Green Party)

Considering what I will be saying about his colleague, the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, I would not say that about the Minister.

Ba mhaith liom mo chuid ama a roinnt leis na Teachtaí Cuffe, Eamon Ryan, Boyle, Morgan, Gregory agus McGrath.

The Green Party, An Comhaontas Glas, has witnessed ongoing deterioration of the natural and built environment under the reign of the present Minister, Deputy Cullen. That in itself would be a cause of shame and badge of failure for this Fianna Fáil-Progressive Democrats Government. However, the conflict arising from the appointment of the Minister as director of elections for Fianna Fáil effectively makes his position untenable.

To be a Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government requires, at the very least, an interest in the issues for which one has responsibility. To hear the Minister confuse global warming and depletion of the ozone layer, on "Morning Ireland" some time ago was not just embarrassing but rang alarm bells for anyone genuinely concerned about the mounting costs of global warming to the taxpayer and the most vulnerable people, as well as numerous species already paying the price of his ineptitude. Lack of action has resulted in Ireland being worst in the EU league as regards non-compliance with the Kyoto limits on greenhouse gases.

The Minister's lack of interest in climate change is more than matched by his messianic interest in acting beyond his powers. In the case of Carrickmines Castle, the Minister, jointly with the local council, applied for permission to destroy a national monument and then effectively granted the approval to himself to fire ahead. With an environment Minister like this, environmentalists need eyes in the back of their heads, as does the High Court, which overruled ministerial approval for the destruction of the medieval castle. Legal actions initiated by the EU Commission during the Irish Presidency again show that the record of this Minister is particularly poor, not just embarrassing for the Government, but for the whole country.

On 13 January the Commission announced legal action against Ireland for non-compliance with EU laws on water quality. On 29 January the Commission again was driven to take legal action on Ireland's failure to protect biodiversity. Recently, Deputy Cullen was accused of acting in breach of the European Union (Scrutiny) Act 2002. In the end Ireland was found guilty by the European Court of Justice of failing to introduce the EU's 1991 nitrates directive.

Since the Minister was a member of the PDs, when we were told he would break the mould, he has gone on to represent the country by breaking the law on behalf of the people. However, I acknowledge that Deputy Cullen does not enjoy breaking the law; to avoid another faux pas he has sought to remove the cap on political corporate donations. It is hardly coincidental that this same Minister is the politician with the most corporate sponsorship in the country. With €35,000 in donations, this is even more than he is allowed to spend in a general election. Sadly, he has refused to put any cap on the amount allowable for local elections spending.

With such wealthy and generous friends the Minister needs to be reminded about the burden his lack of action to deliver adequate affordable housing creates. He needs to be reminded that his lack of support and antagonistic dialogue with environmental NGOs has worn down morale among many volunteers in organisations such as Birdwatch Ireland, Voice, An Taisce, Irish Peatland Conservation Council, Greenhouse Ireland Action Network and many more. Greenpeace and Earthwatch have had to pack up altogether. There is still no dedicated environmental representative in the partnership process.

This Minister is anathema to a sustainable and healthy environment. While he has talks to downgrade special areas of conservation, SACs, he also speaks about "grasping the nettle" to build a necklace of incinerators around Ireland. Even his colleague, the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform, Deputy McDowell, called part of this adventure, "a ready-up" between Deputy Cullen and Dublin City Council. If that is so, it is the Government and not just the Green Party, which should vote "no confidence" in this so-called Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government. Why should this Minister enjoy Government support when he publicly tried to humiliate his own Cabinet colleagues over the ban on smoking in the workplace? We therefore request Government as well as Opposition support for this motion.

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