Jim Higgins (Fine Gael)

It has been raised. Finally, I agree with Senator Norris that this country has a habit of signing up, willy-nilly, to accords, protocols and agreements. Ireland, along with 34 other rich nations, signed up to the Kyoto Protocol but we walked away from our commitments regarding the 5% reduction on the 1990 emission levels. This must be addressed and I agree wholeheartedly with the excellent report produced by a former economist with the World Bank, Professor Nicholas Stern, which stated that there are great economic as well as environmental advantages in meeting our requirements on greenhouse gas emissions and on the non-usage of fossil fuels.