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

The issue of the Energy Charter Treaty is under consideration, I think, across European countries. There is due to be a meeting in Mongolia, I think, in the coming weeks. A lot of concern has been expressed, rightly, about the need to make sure the Energy Charter Treaty and every other international treaty stitches in the Paris Agreement and delivers and supports that. I do not think that has any bearing - it has not in any way, as far as I have seen - on the issue of our ending of oil and gas exploration licences. I do not think it has ever threatened or influenced a decision in that regard at all one way or the other. Such decisions were always made in such a way that we recognised that those existing licences would not be revoked. The decision to which the Deputy referred - Europa, I think, is the name of the field - was a routine extension of the licence conditions that already existed. As a State, we do not go back on contracts or revoke our agreements. That decision is a continuation of the current and correct policy.

Climate finance is key. We made that commitment. It takes time to ramp up. The figure in the latest budget was €120 million, if my memory serves me correctly. That will accelerate significantly to meet the €225 million target in 2025. I do not know the basis for the Deputy's figure as to what our fair share is. If he could forward me the reference to that, I would find that useful.

I will make one or two points about the defensive approach the Irish State has taken. First, our climate finance is not tied to any other conditions.

See this speech in context