Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

In response to Deputy Bríd Smith, there is a dilemma here. In the first instance, the response to climate change must be global. It has to involve all the states insofar as that is possible. That includes Egypt and many other states whose political systems or systems of governance are obviously not what we would be happy with. Through the European Union, we consistently raise issues of human rights in respect of what happens in Egypt and, indeed, other countries within the Middle East, as well as across Asia and Africa. I do not believe COP27 is about greenwashing a police state; I think it is a genuine attempt to follow COP26, which was far more effective than people would have anticipated given that a year or two earlier, President Trump, who did not agree with any of this, was in office. There was actually a degree of agreement between some of the major states at COP26. We need to continue to build on that. Each member state needs to play its role and part.

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