Pauline Tully (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The Government's climate action plan is lacking in leadership and it will place unfair burdens on ordinary people, while failing to deliver the real change that is needed.

The Government's climate action plan is based on the principles of eco-austerity - much of the burden being placed on ordinary workers and families. This is equally the position for family farmers and rural communities, which are facing considerable challenges.

There have been virtually no new supports brought forward by the Government to help farming families meet rising environmental obligations and many of these obligations are also counterproductive in terms of climate action. For example, it is ludicrous that the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine intends to restrict suckler herd sizes while, at the same time, the Government continues to support the EU-Mercosur trade deal, which would see an additional 99,000 tonnes of less sustainable beef flooding the EU market. This will only hasten the demise of the Amazon and contradicts the recent COP26 leaders' declaration to halt deforestation by 2030.

In relation to forestry here in Ireland, afforestation can play an important role in meeting our emission targets. However, the Government is not doing enough to foster this sector. It needs to redirect resources within the Department to resolve the current licensing backlog. Delays in granting licences are forcing the importation of timber while Irish trees cannot be planted or felled. As well as acting as a disincentive to farmers and landowners to enter afforestation, this is threatening 12,000 jobs in the forestry industry. A new forestry strategy is needed that promotes the planting of native broadleaf forestry and incentivises new farmers and landowners to enter afforestation.

Another ludicrous aspect of the Government's climate action plan is the situation whereby thousands of tonnes of peat are being shipped across a continent to Ireland from Latvia. This does not make environmental, economic or ethical sense.

Rather than lecture farmers and rural communities about climate action and penalise them through carbon taxes and counterproductive policies, Sinn Féin has proposed a number of measures that would help family farmers to play a positive role in reducing emissions and making necessary changes. This would involve substantial investment in organics and facilitating new farmers in agri-environmental programmes.

Family farmers and rural communities are up for the challenge of climate action, assuming that they are treated fairly and adequately supported.

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