Alice-Mary Higgins (Independent) | Oireachtas source

This was the exact point at which the debate ended on Committee Stage. Unfortunately, it was only halfway through the Bill. The Minister of State, Deputy Ossian Smyth was responding. There were serious concerns that relate to the original 2015 Act but which are still in this Act whereby some of the safeguards have been put in place did not apply to everybody. The 2015 Act allowed that the advisory council could set up subcommittees and could delegate functions to subcommittees. Amendment no. 32 seeks to be clear that one function that should never be delegated to a subcommittee is the proposal or setting of carbon budgets, because that is almost the core work of the advisory council.

Another concern is that those subcommittees were only obliged to contain one member of the advisory council. All the positive things that were put in around the balance of skills and expertise in the advisory council and the provisions that were there around declarations of interests to ensure that we have clarity around the interests of members of the advisory council only applied to the advisory council members on a subcommittee, whereas there may be many other members who do not have to meet the same qualification criteria discussed in other parts of the Bill and who do not have to declare interests. There is a concern that while we have this high level of scrutiny in appointment and a high level of obligation and declaration of interests and transparency placed on the advisory council, the actual work of the advisory council could be delegated to subcommittees which will contain other persons who do not have to declare their interests. That is not a measure that is being introduced by this Bill but a flaw in the original 2015 legislation. However, given the very serious responsibilities being placed on the advisory council in this Bill it is very important that we address that gap.