Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Tógfaidh mé Ceisteanna 18 agus 19 le chéile.

The Cabinet committee on the environment and climate change oversees the implementation of the ambitious programme for Government commitments on the environment and climate change. The Cabinet committee considers matters relating to climate change, biodiversity loss and the quality of our water and air. It is a forum for consideration of potential policies or interventions posed at a national or EU level to improve Ireland's environmental performance.

The updated climate action plan 2023 was approved by Government and published on 21 December. It contains policies, actions and measures intended to lower greenhouse gas emissions and helps Ireland adopt to the adverse impacts of climate change that are now evident and unavoidable. The plan sets out actions that are required across the sector to meet Ireland's statutory target of reducing emissions by more than half by 2030, with 2018 being the baseline year, and achieving carbon neutrality by the middle of the century.

The plan identifies actions that would help the Government to adhere to the carbon budget and sectoral emission ceilings we adopted last year.

It identifies key performance indicators within each sector that will be used to measure our progress. The plan will be accompanied by an annexe of actions which will provide further detail on implementation, including specific timelines and bodies responsible for ensuring actions are completed as planned. The annexe is being finalised and will be published in the coming weeks. The next meeting of the Cabinet committee is scheduled to take place on Thursday, 20 April and will continue to meet regularly to progress all aspects of the Government's ambitious climate action and environmental policy agenda.

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