Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Níl ach dhá nóiméad go leith agam. Ba mhaith liom mo thacaíocht don rún seo agus don phróiseas a chur in iúl. Táim 100% taobh thiar den rún agus den reachtaíocht. Tá sé thar am stop a chur leis an gcur i gcéill. An bhfuil muid i ndáiríre faoi athrú aeráide? An bhfuil muid chun beart a dhéanamh de réir ár mbriathar? Sin bun agus barr an scéal. Tá sé thar am é a dhéanamh. Seo an Dáil dheireanach chun beart a dhéanamh de réir ár mbriathar.

I feel a certain sympathy for the Minister of State. I do not know how he could stand over the speech he read out in view of the seriousness of what we are discussing. In view of the ruling made by the Ceann Comhairle, I will stick to the issue of the process. The motion asserts that the pre-legislative scrutiny on the Bill has been discharged and that it is time to move on to Committee Stage. I agree with that because of the seriousness of the issue but the Government seems to have missed the message entirely. We have had the Tionól Saoranach telling us to take action, pointing us in the right direction and giving us clear recommendations. We have had students on our streets. The Irish Fiscal Advisory Council, as referred to by Deputy Ó Broin, has told us that our reputation as a climate laggard is likely to discourage foreign direct investment. I think that may be language that the Government understands. Our climate inaction will discourage foreign direct investment. Indeed, the IDA has warned that more and more companies are asking about our policy on fossil fuel divestment.

We have taken some measures in the Dáil, by way of new politics, of which I am very proud, particularly Deputy Pringle's Bill which recently became law. I thank Deputy Bríd Smith for persisting with this legislation. I do not know how we can look in the eye of the children of this country who are appealing to us to take action because they will live with the consequences. Not only will the children of this country live with the consequences, it is those in the poorer countries of the world who contribute least to climate change who will bear the brunt of it, as we saw recently in Mozambique in Africa. We have talked of legislation and time but now we must take action. The Government likes to quote the former President, Ms Mary Robinson, on occasion but it does not really listen to her. She is telling us that we have to get to zero emissions by 2050 in order to stay below 2°C of warming. That means that we must leave two thirds or more of the known resources of fossil fuels in the ground.

There is a deliberate misinterpretation of what is proposed in the motion and the Bill. I suggest that the Minister of State's speechwriters read the motion and the Bill. I also urge them to read what the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council, Professor Sweeney, Trócaire and others have said, if they think that the Deputies proposing and supporting this are too far to the left. The Government should take a look at what others have said and then look the children of this country in the eye and tell them that it is not going to do anything.

See this speech in context