John Gormley (Dublin South East, Green Party)

As much as I would like to reveal to the Deputy the elements of the review, I think he will understand that these are matters for the respective parties in government and much of the review process will have to remain confidential and the process and the timeline have not yet been agreed. One aspect that has been flagged already and I have spoken about it is the idea of a climate change Bill. This is very close to the heart of many people in my own party and it is also a priority for many of the non-governmental organisations. Such a Bill would enshrine many of the elements we have already introduced, including the idea of a carbon budget. This may have to be refined and I am currently considering this matter.

For the past number of years the carbon budget has been announced directly after the budget speech. I am not sure if this is entirely appropriate because it tends to become overshadowed by the budget considerations. We will have to decide whether it should be held on the next day or a week later. These may be fairly minor elements but we have set up the Joint Committee on Climate Change and Energy Security which is chaired by one of the Deputy's colleagues. The sub-committee which directs discussions between the various Departments is chaired by the Taoiseach. This sub-committee aims to ensure that CO2 emissions can be reduced across all Departments. These are very important considerations but other elements relating to the environment include the progression of the issue of waste management and the very important question of the protection of our waterways and the question of septic tanks - which will be discussed later this afternoon - and a range of other issues. All these issues will be included in the discussions. I will be happy to keep the Deputy informed but as yet, we are going through what are called the modalities and the timeline has not been set.

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