Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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The European Council will meet in Brussels later this week on 20 and 21 October.

Before turning to that meeting, I will briefly update the House on the first meeting of the European Political Community, which took place in Prague on 6 October, and on the informal meeting of the European Council that took place the following day.

The first meeting of the European Political Community on 6 October was a welcome development in wider European political engagement. It was hosted by the Prime Minister of the Czech Republic, Dr. Petr Fiala, with the support of the President of the European Council, Mr. Charles Michel.

Forty-four states were invited to participate, including all 27 EU member states; the European Free Trade Agreement partner countries - Norway, Iceland, Switzerland and Liechtenstein; the UK; Türkiye; the six Western Balkan countries - Serbia, Montenegro, Albania, North Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo; and five of the six Eastern Partnership countries - Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Moldova and Ukraine. No invitation was extended to Belarus, given its ongoing facilitation of Russia's illegal and immoral war against Ukraine by permitting Russian armed forces to use its territory and by providing support to the Russian military.

During the opening plenary session, interventions were made by the Prime Minister, Dr. Fiala, the President of Ukraine, Mr. Volodymyr Zelenskyy via video-conference, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Ms Liz Truss, the Prime Minister of Norway, Mr. Jonas Gahr Støre, and the Prime Minister of Albania, Mr. Edi Rama, on the opportunities presented by this new format for political dialogue and co-ordination. The meeting achieved its primary aim of bringing together leaders from across the continent of Europe to recognise the considerable degree of common cause among us. The formal agenda included Ukraine, energy and the European economy. It was notable also for the welcome agreement reached in the margins with Armenia and Azerbaijan to accept a civilian EU mission alongside their border.

The formation of a European Political Community, an idea originating with President Macron, was discussed by EU leaders at the June European Council. There was broad agreement that there would be a value in a pan-continental political forum in which geopolitical challenges could be discussed candidly among leaders from the entire European neighbourhood. I believe that its inaugural meeting demonstrated that it has a value and that it will neither cut across the process of EU enlargement as some had feared nor interfere with the important work of other pan-European bodies, such as the Council of Europe and the OECD. Before leaving Prague, leaders agreed to meet again in the same format in the first half of next year in Moldova, and to meetings thereafter, in the second half of the year in Spain and in the UK in the first half of 2023.

While I was at the European Political Community meeting, I participated in a round-table discussion on energy, climate and the economy co-chaired by the Greek Prime Minister, Mr. Kyriakos Mitsotakis, and the President of the Swiss Federation. Common themes in the discussion included immediate-term pressures on energy costs for citizens and businesses in all of our countries, and the need for greater interconnection and an accelerated move to renewables as soon as practicable to ensure stable and secure pricing and supply on an ongoing basis.

The meeting also offered welcome opportunities to meet with leaders from the wider European family. I was pleased to have bilateral meetings with Ukraine, Albania and Bosnia. The Prime Minister of Ukraine, Mr. Denys Shmyhal, once again expressed his heartfelt gratitude for Ireland's support for his government and people, as they continue to withstand Russian aggression. He expressed his appreciation that Ireland continues to be to the forefront of advocating for Ukraine's membership of the EU, for the toughest possible sanctions against Russia and for holding Russia accountable, and that we are hosting more than 52,000 Ukrainian people in need of protection. I assured him of our continued support at this time of terrible need and trauma in Ukraine.

I also met with two of our partners in the Western Balkans - the Prime Minister of Albania, Mr. Edi Rama, and the Chairman of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina. In both meetings, I expressed my support for them on their EU accession pathway.

The members of the European Council held an informal meeting on 7 October. Our discussion was a strategic one covering the topics of Ukraine, energy and economic issues to inform and prepare for our regular meeting later this week.

The formal agenda for this week's European Council covers Ukraine, energy, economic issues and external relations. The Minister of State, Deputy Byrne, will address external relations issues in his remarks later. I will address all other issues.

Leaders will discuss Russia's escalating war of aggression against Ukraine. I expect leaders to send a strong message that the EU will stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes. This week, the Council will discuss in particular how to continue to provide strong political, military and financial support to Ukraine, including for its liquidity needs, and how to step up our humanitarian response, in particular, as winter is approaching. This week's meeting takes place against the backdrop of the despicable recent indiscriminate missile attacks against civilians and civilian infrastructure in Kyiv and across Ukraine. It is also in the context of Russia's recent illegal annexation of the Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions. As in the case of Crimea, we will never recognise these illegal annexations.

The adoption of the eighth sanctions package on 6 October was very welcome. Ireland has consistently supported imposing the strongest possible sanctions on Russia and we will continue to do so. Ireland is also contributing to non-lethal military assistance to Ukraine via the European Peace Facility, which adopted its sixth tranche this week. Even as war rages across Ukraine, life continues in cities and villages, farms, small businesses and public services across the country. Ukraine faces challenges now in terms of immediate liquidity needs to ensure that basic state functions can continue to support the millions of Ukrainians at home. I will discuss with fellow EU leaders the importance of agreeing quickly mechanisms to provide the liquidity support that we have agreed in principle to Ukraine without delay.

When we meet this week, we will have an opportunity also to discuss EU support for Ukraine's reconstruction, which requires planning now and which will require a wider international partnership led by Ukraine with suitable governance structures. Later this month, a conference hosted by the European Commission and the German G7 Presidency in Berlin will examine these issues in further detail.

Leaders will also discuss the impact of Russia's war on global food security. Russia's war has sparked a global food crisis causing disruptions to agricultural production, supply chains and trade that have driven world food and fertiliser prices to unprecedented levels. The duration of the UN Black Sea grain initiative, which has been successful in ensuring the export of much-needed grain from Ukraine, is due to end next month. I will join fellow leaders in calling for it to be extended beyond that time limit.

As we see a continued uptick in hybrid attacks, EU leaders will also discuss how to ensure the security of critical infrastructure. Deliberate acts of sabotage, such as those against the Nord Stream pipelines, need to be met with a united and determined response.

At this week's meeting, EU leaders will further discuss energy issues, especially pricing and supply, which remain at the top of the European political agenda. The issue was central to discussions at the informal meeting of the European Council in Prague. The EU has since the illegal invasion of Ukraine taken significant measures in response to the use of energy as a weapon by Russia, both to underpin security of supply and to mitigate the impact of the dramatic prices increases we have seen for businesses and consumers. These measures include: action to attract new supplies to support diversification away from Russian gas; a gas storage regulation to prepare the EU for a difficult winter; a gas demand regulation to seek to better balance supply and demand for gas; and a regulation on an emergency intervention to address high energy prices.

The last of these - the emergency regulation - was adopted by the Council on 6 October and will enter into force on 1 December. It provides for: a voluntary 10% electricity demand reduction over the winter, with a 5% reduction obligation during peak hours; a cap on the revenue of electricity producers using inframarginal sources such as renewables and nuclear; and a solidarity contribution from fossil fuel profits.

The EU also adopted a temporary crisis framework on state aid to provide greater space for governments to support businesses affected by the economic consequences of the war, including those resulting from high energy prices. As a result of these and other measures, we have seen a significant diversification away from Russian fossil fuels and towards more reliable suppliers, including Norway, the UK and the US. Gas storage for the winter ahead across the EU now stands at more than 90%, with the targeted levels reached ahead of schedule.

Nonetheless when European Union leaders met in Prague there was a clear view that more can and should be done at European Union level. In advance of that meeting, President von der Leyen set out a roadmap of actions. These include stepping up negotiations with reliable suppliers to reduce the price of imported gas, working with member states to develop an intervention to limit prices in the natural gas market, supporting a discussion aimed at limiting the inflationary impact of gas on electricity prices, and boosting investment to accelerate the green transition.

Building on last week's discussions, and to inform our meeting this week, the European Commission yesterday published a communication on the energy emergency as well as an emergency regulation. This is aimed at mitigating the impacts of high gas prices by addressing demand and supply, ensuring security of supply and enhancing solidarity. The proposed package includes measures to facilitate joint purchase of gas using the EU's strength to ensure the best possible price, in particular to support the filling of gas storage next year. It also includes provisions to increase solidarity and security of supply and measures aimed at dampening energy prices including development of a new benchmark for trading LNG in particular, and working with member states to develop ways to limit the impact of high gas prices on electricity. Flanking measures being proposed include extension of the temporary crisis framework, making the cohesion framework policy more flexible and accelerating the transition to sustainable sources through RePowerEU. Leaders will discuss these proposals this week, with detailed work to be taken forward by energy Ministers.

As I have seen in my discussions with partners, these issues are complex and technical and need careful consideration, including to avoid unintended adverse consequences. Any step we take must help us to reduce prices without risking security of supply. Measures also need to take into consideration the very different situations in member states as well as their very different energy sources and mixes.

In parallel with short-term actions, we need to accelerate the green transition and step up investments in future-ready energy infrastructure, including interconnections and innovative renewable technologies, to enhance our energy security and to meet our climate ambitions. The European Commission will also speed up work on the structural reform of the electricity market to ensure it is fit for purpose in the future.

As we have seen in recent months and weeks, Putin is prepared to use all means at his disposal, including disrupting international energy markets, to pursue his immoral war in Ukraine. EU leaders have been clear that he will not succeed. We will continue to stand in solidarity with Ukraine and with each other as we approach what may be a very difficult winter. The European Council will also take stock of the economic situation more generally, which is dominated by the significant ramifications of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, which is pushing rising inflation to multi-decade highs.

As the IMF highlighted last week in its latest World Economic Outlook, global economic activity is experiencing a broad-based and sharper than expected slowdown. Global growth is forecast to slow from 6% in 2021 to 3.2% in 2022 and 2.7% in 2023. This is one of the weakest growth profiles in recent times. The 2023 slowdown is also expected to be broad-based, with countries accounting for about one third of the global economy poised to contract this year or next. Our immediate priority must be to protect households, jobs and businesses, in particular the most vulnerable in our societies, while preserving the European Union's global competitiveness and the integrity of our Single Market. In this context, I welcome the statement agreed by the Eurogroup finance ministers on 3 October on the fiscal policy response to high energy prices and inflationary pressures as well as their historic meeting with US Treasury Secretary Yellen in Washington on 14 October.

As I said, the Minister of State, Deputy Thomas Byrne, will address the external relations issues on the agenda in his wrap-up statement. This week's meeting of EU leaders will be an opportunity to take stock of the situation in Ukraine and the wider geopolitical context. It will also be an important opportunity to discuss the energy challenges we face and their impact on our citizens as we face into the winter. I will report to the House on our discussions after the meeting.

Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein)
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The European Council will meet at a time of ongoing discussion on the Irish protocol. We are facing the 28 October deadline for agreement between the European Union and the British Government. I am therefore surprised the Taoiseach did not have in his remarks any reference to the protocol and the politics playing out around all of this.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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It is not on the agenda at the Council meeting.

Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein)
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It is critical that these talks deliver a positive outcome, the chaos in London and the dysfunction of the Tory Truss Government notwithstanding. It is important that we have good faith negotiations and the needs of ordinary people in the North and across Ireland are put front and centre. The European Union is essential in ensuring all of this happens. To repeat the point, I am surprised therefore that the Taoiseach has not made reference to this fact in his commentary.

Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
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It is not on the agenda.

Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein)
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It is very much on the agenda for the people living on this island.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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We know that.

Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein)
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We are now into the end game.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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It is not on the Council agenda.

Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein)
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It is the Taoiseach's job to ensure it intrudes on the agenda of the European Council. He will find very willing ears on it.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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No, I do not actually.

Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein)
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If I could continue without the endless heckling from the Taoiseach and his colleague.

Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)
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If I may, as Acting Chair, intervene at this point in time. There is a long-standing convention in the House as I understand it. This agenda item is statements on the European Council meeting of October 20 and 21 pursuant to Standing Order 124. I ask all Members present to confine their remarks to this particular topic. It does not help the House if Members are barracking each other. It serves no purpose whatsoever. If we could have more light than heat in the debate, it would be helpful for everybody.

Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein)
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I thank the Acting Chair for the clarification. To clarify further, I was being barracked and not vice versa.

The Taoiseach is aware that since Michelle O'Neill was elected First Minister designate in May, the DUP has refused to re-enter the Executive and appoint a deputy First Minister. The DUP cites concerns around the protocol but the reality is it is holding democracy to ransom. There is no justification for keeping Stormont on ice while these talks continue. The DUP should be at the Executive table working to deliver for workers and families hit by a cost-of-living crisis. People want to see their political leaders working together to tackle the big issues, such as investing in the health system and ensuring that people can pay their energy bills, and not the type of brinkmanship the DUP is currently engaged in. I am sure the Taoiseach's message to the DUP when he visited the North recently was that it must get back into the Executive without any further delay.

The implementation issues around the protocol, and God knows they have been well rehearsed, can be resolved through dialogue, partnership and a genuine commitment to ensuring the needs of the people in the North and across the island are front and centre. Our European partners are determined to resolve these issues. It is imperative at this stage that this determination does not wain. The determination from Europe must be matched with similar resolve from the British Government to reach agreement on any outstanding issues. Therefore, it is crucial that the British Government, whoever might lead it, engages in good faith and constructive negotiations with the European Union. It should not need repeating that the protocol exists because Brexiteers, including the Tories and the DUP, pursued Brexit despite warnings from far and wide on the effect of Brexit. The protocol protects all-island trade, the Good Friday Agreement, communities and business in the North from the damage caused by Brexit. Many businesses have spoken consistently of the effect of the protocol allowing continuing access to the EU market and the value of this.

The protocol must be built upon and protected. As the Taoiseach heads off to meet his European colleagues, I ask that he makes clear the ongoing need for the protocol to be protected and implemented in full, and that he encourages continued and steadfast engagement, such as we have seen from our European partners, so that no one is left with any misunderstanding that constructive, positive dialogue is the only way forward.

John Brady (Wicklow, Sinn Fein)
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Hopefully the Chair will be lenient with time due to the heckling and interruptions.

Europe is arguably enmeshed in the most critical security crisis since the Second World War, a security crisis that continues to have national, regional and global ramifications. Amid the horror of human rights abuses and war crimes committed by Russia, Vladimir Putin saw fit to introduce the unprecedented threat of nuclear attack, a development that has been utterly condemned by all right-thinking people across the globe for its utter recklessness.

The effects of the war in Ukraine on climate change and regional instability have combined to produce a human crisis on a massive scale in the global south. Without a commitment from the international community, the crisis in the Horn of Africa will continue to produce human suffering on an extraordinary scale. I appeal to the Taoiseach and the Minister of State to ensure that humanitarian crises are placed at the centre of the EU agenda and that the clamour for war emanating from within sections of the EU is not allowed to overshadow the commitment to humanitarian and egalitarian principles, which the EU is purportedly grounded upon.

As a militarily non-aligned nation, Ireland has a moral responsibility both to uphold that position and to harness the moral and ethical record of our role in international affairs as being the dissenting voice that can act as a counterweight, which places the humanitarian responsibilities of the EU at the forefront of discourse within the union. In that vein, it is incumbent on us to draw attention to the recent totally unacceptable comments of Josep Borrell when he described Europe as the "garden" of the world and the world outside as a "jungle" trying to get in. Such comments re-emphasise the need for countries such as Ireland to act as a moral counterweight to emerging narratives of European exceptionalism that, if left unchecked, could witness a return of the colonial mindset that wrought such a blight on the world in the past.

I want to send solidarity to those in Iran who continue to protest against the unjust laws and human rights abuses that led to the death of a young woman in police custody, whose only crime was to offend a distorted and grotesque sense of morality through her refusal to wear a hijab.

While I have spoken about Ireland's responsibility to be the voice in Europe that places international human rights at the centre of the EU agenda, the Government also has a central responsibility to address the needs of the Irish people both in Europe and Ireland. The reality is the continuum of crises that have impacted on this Island in recent years have left large swathes of people in a very vulnerable position. From Brexit, to Covid, to the ongoing impact of the war in Ukraine, the aggregate impact of these crises is being felt in almost every household. In many respects, the failure of the coalition Government to provide the necessary leadership at home, in the face of the crushing cost-of-living crisis, has undermined its role in Europe.

Current energy costs, the result of Russia’s weaponisation of energy supplies, come at a time when many energy companies are enjoying record profits and have left many householders across the State with the stark and unimaginable choice of heating their homes or providing food for their families to eat. The failure of the EU to address the energy crisis, coupled with the failure of the Government to address the crisis at home, merely compounds the misery for ordinary people and stands as a damning and unforgivable indictment of this Government's failure.

Ivana Bacik (Dublin Bay South, Labour)
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I thank the Taoiseach for outlining the developments at the meeting of the European political community on 6 October. We know the meeting this week of European leaders, on 20 and 21 October, comes at a pivotal moment in the plans for tackling the energy emergency and cost-of-living crisis, as well as the ongoing response of Europe to Russia's brutal war against the people of Ukraine. What matters most to people, however, is the tangible proposals that emerge from the Council meeting and whether they will be implemented before winter.

Last weekend, I had the opportunity to attend the annual congress of the Party of European Socialists in Berlin on behalf of the Labour Party. Among the addresses at the conference was that of German Chancellor Mr. Olaf Scholz, leader of the Social Democratic Party in Germany. He spoke in support of the accession of western Balkan states. I am glad the Taoiseach also spoke in support of the accession of Bosnia Herzegovina and Albania.

At the congress in Berlin, socialists and social democrats from across Europe gathered to discuss policies on energy, inflation, climate change and social challenges. I was privileged to meet with socialist prime ministers from the many countries across the EU who have already acted on energy prices. I was privileged and proud to address members on the need for stronger collective bargaining rights and on the issue of a pay raise for workers, as well as the need for collective action on energy prices. What I heard from leaders across Europe was about bold national actions being taken to reduce costs and tackle the energy crisis. Unfortunately, here in Ireland, we have seen much slower progress by the Government on policies in this area.

For many months, we in the Labour Party have been arguing for a comprehensive response to the energy in Ireland, including the introduction of a windfall tax on energy profits, a cap on the price of energy modelled on the Iberian approach, and the temporary nationalisation of the Corrib gas field. Weeks on from the budget, despite the Tánaiste confirming to me in this House last week that a windfall tax would be introduced, we still have no sense of when that will happen or, indeed, what type of tax it will be. Will we have to rely on EU legislation for this tax or will provision be made for this in the Finance Bill?

We have seen other member states take initiatives at national level, therefore, we do not need to wait for an EU-wide initiative. As I mentioned, Spain and Portugal have already intervened. The Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez of Spain and Prime Minister Antonio Costa of Portugal, with whom I engaged at the weekend, are both socialist prime ministers who have intervened to ensure there is state regulation of dysfunctional gas and electricity markets. As socialists, they recognise that governments must act and intervene in the market to protect their people and they have saved billions of euro for their citizens by doing so. Their Iberian model of energy cap has been the subject of intensive debate and interest in Europe over the past month, but it is still not clear if the EU will act or if something will come out of the European Council meeting later this week.

I ask you Minister of State to speak to the Taoiseach and to confirm if Ireland will support the Spanish and Portuguese Iberian model introduced by our sister socialist parties. The actions of Spain and Portugal have shown the sort of proactive measures that socialists in government can and have taken to protect their citizens from the fallout of Putin's brutal war in Ukraine. We acknowledge that designing and costing an energy price cap is complex and that there are different ways to go about doing so, but we know that across this country households and businesses are suffering now and are fearful about the impact of the next energy bill upon their homes and businesses. Once-off payments and energy credits of the sort the Government has introduced will simply not be enough because businesses are closing and people are struggling to heat their homes and we have not even entered the real winter months yet. People cannot wait any longer for the EU to act and we are were calling on the Government to intervene now in the gas and electricity market in Ireland.

On the Council's deliberations on the war in Ukraine, it is good to hear the Taoiseach confirming strong solidarity across EU states in their opposition to Russia's brutal war and in their determination to give greater aid to Ukraine. I ask that Ireland commits to giving more financial aid to support civilian social programmes, including funds to support education, health and social welfare, and to support local communities in welcoming Ukrainian visitors to Ireland, alongside investment for Ukraine in rebuilding and recovering from the despicable attacks we have seen on ordinary people. I ask that the Council consider the escalatory attacks of Russia over the past week, assisted by Iranian-made drones. We have seen the targeting of energy infrastructure and civilian apartment complexes by Russia, which are blatant war crimes.

In response to a question from Deputy Howlin in the Dáil last week, the Minister for Foreign Affairs confirmed there are 26 officers at the Embassy of the Russian Federation in Ireland, 11 diplomats and 15 administrative and technical staff. What reason is there for 26 staff to be retained at the Russian Embassy here?

We need to act and break off diplomatic relations with Russia. We are seeing horrific war crimes being committed and escalating reactions in the past week alone. Why can we not move to expel embassy staff? I welcomed the expulsion of some embassy staff earlier in the conflict, but let us move further to expel the other staff. At this point, we should flag the removal of our embassy from Russia. It should and must become an international pariah. I ask that stronger action be taken at EU level and here to express our outright condemnation of Russia's brutality and war crimes against Ukraine.

Brian Leddin (Limerick City, Green Party)
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I welcome the Taoiseach's statement prior to the European Council meeting and the agenda for the meeting, which is to discuss Ukraine, energy, economic issues, external relations and the COP27 summit in a few weeks' time. I welcome the Taoiseach's points on Russia. Europe needs to maintain its steadfast support for the Ukrainian people. Ultimately, the Russian despot has to be defeated. I acknowledge our neutrality and status of military non-alignment, but we have to do everything we can in Ireland to help the Ukrainian people and we have to bring that message to Europe.

With respect to energy, we have an energy crisis. I heard Deputy Brady from Sinn Féin state that Europe had caused the energy crisis. Europe has not caused it; Russia has caused it and Europe is doing everything it can to solve it.

John Brady (Wicklow, Sinn Fein)
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I think the Deputy will find that is what I said.

Brian Leddin (Limerick City, Green Party)
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What Europe is facing now is absolutely incredible. For example, Germany was dependent on Russian gas for 70% of its energy needs, and that has been shut off. What is being asked of Europe is incredible and Europe and Ireland are responding. Ireland can respond further, less so in the short term but more so in the medium and long term. We have an opportunity to develop our indigenous energy resource, not just for our needs but to help Europe in the long run. We can do that to become energy independent and also to solve this great existential crisis.

COP27 is coming up in a few weeks' time in Egypt. I watched a report on CNN today which discussed the importance of cities in the climate challenge we face. Cities account for 75% of the world's emissions. I read an interview with the mayor of Utrecht. A delegation from Limerick city is in Utrecht this week to look at what it has done to become a sustainable city. It is probably the lead city in the world in terms of sustainability. As many Members will know, this centres around its approach to transport and liveability. We have to follow cities like Utrecht, and I daresay in Limerick we are doing that.

There was an incredibly positive announcement during the week, which the Taoiseach referenced, namely, the announcement of a new train station for Moyross. It will be the first new train station in Limerick in a century. It is not just a new train station; it is the first in a network of new train stations. It is a new way of thinking about the development of our city and developing it in a sustainable way around a sustainable transport network. We will see new stations in Ballysimon, Dooradoyle, Patrickswell, Adare, Lisnagry, Corbally and other places. That is the vision we have, and Moyross is very much the start.

I want to reference the OECD report published two weeks ago, which is very relevant to this discussion about cities and their importance in tackling the challenge we face. The OECD report examined transport emissions in Ireland. It found 20% of all of our emissions are related to transport and stated we need to change our system. We cannot tinker around the edges. Rather, we have to think about systems change, which is very challenging. We have thought about the role of electric vehicles. There certainly is a role for electric vehicles, but it is not the primary role in meeting the challenge we face. In any decision we take we have to make sure that we do not reinforce the system we have. The solution to transport emissions, which relates to cities as well as transport between cities, is to change our system completely to public transport and active travel. Again related to Limerick, the work the active travel team is doing is wonderful and it has turned a corner. Some of the schemes it has proposed in Limerick city will be held up as an exemplar for other local authorities in the country to follow.

Marc Ó Cathasaigh (Waterford, Green Party)
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In 2016, the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 2016 to 2025 the United Nations decade of action on nutrition. It set out a concrete timeline for the implementation of commitments to meet a set of global nutrition targets by 2025 and identified what it called an unprecedented opportunity for addressing all forms of malnutrition.

I do not know how I can make that commitment sit alongside what I heard on "Morning Ireland" today. Paul Healy, Trócaire's country director for Somalia, spoke to the programme from Dollow in south central Somalia. He described a situation that he called an absolute disaster. He said, "Our stabilisation centre for severe and acute malnutrition is absolutely jam-packed with starving children". That is playing out all across central Somalia. The lives of people have been completely destroyed by extreme drought.

As Deputy Brady mentioned, the scale of the humanitarian catastrophe playing out across east Africa, the Horn of Africa in particular, is unthinkable. In Somalia alone, over 1 million people have been displaced from their lands due to the scale of the drought. Their land is gone; it is parched. Their animals are dead and over 3 million livestock have been lost already. The rains have failed for four consecutive years. According to Paul Healy, this is deeper, longer and more severe than any drought in living memory. He said on "Morning Ireland" that there are currently half a million children in Somalia on the edge of death. I know the Minister of State has small children at home, as do I. I cannot hear that statement and not relate it to my life. If we think of the deep and lingering scar that we experienced on the Irish national psyche from the Great Famine, what is being played out in east Africa at the moment is worse. Have no doubt that what we are seeing are climate refugees, among the first victims of a changed and changing climate. They are paying a price for a crisis that is not of their making. It is we in the global north who have historically had the greatest impact on the Earth's atmosphere, changing its composition through the use of fossil fuels. It is we in the global north who continue to produce the greatest share of greenhouse gas emissions. To put it in context, the average person in Ireland will generate over 90 times the carbon emissions of a Somalian in any given year.

Mr. Healy welcomed Irish Aid putting forward €30 million for the Horn of Africa. I very much welcome it too, but the global community has to do a lot more. Ireland was instrumental in the development of the sustainable development goals. We co-chaired those sessions along with Kenya. We cannot leave our involvement there. We have to actively pursue the vindication of the sustainable development goals in any forum in which we have the opportunity to do so, be it in the UN or European Council meetings. We also need to bring these issues to COP27, which this year will be hosted in Africa. We have to put the issue of a loss and damage facility front and centre in those discussions. Those who have contributed least to the issue of climate change are the ones who are on the front line and are suffering the most.

We talk about fairness in Ireland a lot. We say, "fair play" to a Minister, cothrom na Féinne. It is something that comes easily to our lips. We need to apply the basic human principle of fairness across the board for us to have any hope of there being a just transition for people in the developing world.

I will make a final comment on COP27. I was, frankly, disgusted to see Coca-Cola, one of the largest, if not the largest, plastic polluters on the face of the earth announced as the event's sponsor. If I brought a can of Coke in here or wore a Coca-Cola t-shirt, the Minister of State would eat me alive, and he would be dead right. Yet, we see fit to splash it across the Conference of Parties where we are discussing the huge and driving need for us to work together to make a difference across climate change.

This is greenwashing of the highest order. It badly undermines COP27 and was an absolutely terrible decision by the organisers.