Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

Yes to most, or all, of those comments. The Commission will work now on the new higher ambitions. Sending in the outgoing NECP proposal around the climate action plan will give us a baseline by which the new Commission can do its assessment of what a higher ambition will target, and how we would contribute to the higher ambition of at least 50% to 55% emission reductions across the European Union. This is what we now need to work on with the Commission, having moved on from the old baseline level, which everyone agrees now needs to be increased.

The Deputy also referred to offshore oil and gas exploration, and I would include imports of liquefied natural gas, LNG. We have to achieve that objective at the same time. Critically, I agree with the Deputy on that central fact. I will also seek to call the Cabinet environment committee the committee on climate action, biodiversity and the environment. We are in a biodiversity crisis, as well as a climate crisis, and the solutions to the climate crisis will help us in addressing the biodiversity crisis in a whole range of different ways. It is absolutely critical that we do this as an integrated project, and not just tackle the climate crisis but also the biodiversity crisis at the same time. I wholeheartedly agree with the Deputy on that.

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