Paudie Coffey (Waterford, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I am happy to clarify the Government position’s on these amendments. Both amendments relate to the timeframe within which the periodic review reports are to be submitted to the Government by the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government and the timeframe within which they are to be published by the climate change advisory council. Both timeframes are related, as it is intended in the Bill to provide the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, in practice, with a window of just 30 days within which a periodic review report could be submitted to the Government before the report is actually published. In reality, the Minister may have to consult with other colleagues in Government to collate responses before putting a report to the Cabinet, meaning it cannot be too specific.

I hasten to add that there is no intention or provision for the Government to seek to alter or amend the periodic review report. The 30-day timeframe is merely to afford a courtesy to the Government. A maximum 30-day wait for publication cannot be said to constitute any undue or any untoward delay. Therefore, we will not accept the amendments.