Maureen O'Sullivan (Dublin Central, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I am not sure NGOs such as Trócaire, Oxfam and Friends of the Earth will take much heart from what the Taoiseach has just said. On Leaders' Questions some months ago, the Taoiseach said to me: "[W]e must challenge ourselves in measuring up and being recognised as a country that really is fulfilling obligations in respect of climate change". The one positive thing that came from what the Taoiseach was saying yesterday was that Ireland would be involved in legally binding agreements. However, that is not much if those agreements are diluted.

What is needed in the agreements is that human rights are integrated in all climate-related actions. We have to commit to food security, not just an increase in industrial food production. There can be no ambiguity around emissions. We need a 100% renewables goal and the phasing out of fossil fuels because the biofuel strategy has been a disaster in some countries. We also need independent assessment of the individual country commitments, with the assessment to begin in 2018 with regular reviews.

Ireland has got considerable praise for securing international agreement on the Sustainable Development Goals, ten of the 17 of which are about climate change. We are acknowledged as a champion in countering hunger but unless we walk the walk on climate change, we are guilty of being hypocritical. It raises a question about policy coherence that on the one hand, we are going to give development aid, which gives us a feel-good factor and on the other hand, we are taking back in that we are not delivering on climate change. What do we do? Will we just keep giving foreign aid and pay millions, if not billions, in fines to the EU because we are not meeting targets? Environmental sustainability has to be an indicator of progress, both nationally and globally. Will we commit to that?

See this speech in context