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

Governments of the world can be split between those who are climate leaders and those who are climate laggards. All of us want to ensure that Ireland is in the first category rather than the second, showing leadership on climate and not lagging behind others. Let us look to some examples of leadership by different governments. In Wales, the Labour Government has taken the radical decision to halt future road-building projects due to climate concerns. In France, the Government is moving to ban short-haul flights where a decent rail alternative is available. In Australia, state governments are turning down mining licences to avoid further damage to the coral on the Great Barrier Reef. Closer to home, the European Parliament has voted to ban the sale of new combustion-engine cars by 2035.

Politics is about choices, as we know, and change is always a choice. For a great many years, Ireland was labelled internationally as a climate laggard. The passing of the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Act, which we all supported, marked an important step in this country’s path to a cleaner environment and a safer future, and to positive change on climate. As in so many areas, this Government’s approach to climate action since then has been strong on rhetoric and the setting of targets but weak on delivery and the achievement of targets; more laggard than leader. It does not help that many of those supporting climate action within the Government are so regularly undermined by others in the coalition Government, although I have to say that looking across the floor today, it looks more like a single-party government than a coalition.

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