Jennifer Whitmore (Wicklow, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

The Taoiseach stated that climate change was a profound challenge that would require all of our efforts to address it. I agree. Akin to how we dealt with Covid, it is a fundamental societal challenge. When we were debating and dealing with Covid, we followed the scientists' lead and the evidence.

At the committee dealing with carbon budgets in recent months, the independent scientists were clear that the proposed carbon budgets did not go far enough. Not only did they not go far enough to meet our climate targets, but they did not go far enough to meet the Government's commitment under the programme for Government for a 7% per annum reduction. In fact, only a 5.7% reduction is provided by these budgets. Is the Taoiseach concerned that the carbon budgets coming to the Cabinet for approval do not meet the commitments that it made in the programme for Government and what will it do about that?

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