Dáil debates

Thursday, 16 September 2021

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions

Climate Change Policy

9:10 am

Photo of Ivana BacikIvana Bacik (Dublin Bay South, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for his warm welcome. I appreciate that, as a constituency colleague. I was thrilled and honoured to have been elected this summer to represent the people of Dublin Bay South.

I also thank the Minister for his response on the just transition point. There is a broader issue here, however, about the dangers of unregulated free markets and untrammelled economic growth. There is a need for us to look at how we can address climate change, the climate emergency and crisis. We must build an economic and class analysis into our response so that we do not see green policies in a silo. I know the Minister agrees with me on that point. Those policies do not exist in a vacuum and must include an economic and class response.

I have seen a very scary map of what Dublin would look like - what a rise in sea level would mean for us as citizens in Dublin - if COP26 does not hold back global warming. We know that COP26 is seen as the last best chance of keeping global warming to 1.5% above pre-industrial levels. If it does not succeed in doing that, we know the consequences for all of us.

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