Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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1. To ask the Taoiseach to provide an update on the progress of the annexe of actions contained with each annual climate action plan; to provide a breakdown of which actions are completed, are in progress and-or remain outstanding, by year, for the years 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 and to date in 2025, in tabular form. [2821/25]

Micheál Martin (Cork South-Central, Fianna Fail)
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Under the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development (Amendment) Act 2021, updates of the Climate Action Plan (CAP) are published on an annual basis. They detail climate policies, measures and actions required to reduce Ireland’s greenhouse gas emissions in pursuit of statutory emissions reduction targets. CAPs detail specific actions that government departments, agencies and public bodies commit to take together with a timeline for the completion of each action.

To track delivery of actions, the Department of the Taoiseach prepares progress reports, in collaboration with implementing Departments. Attention is drawn to ‘high impact’ measures across all Progress Reports, highlighting those actions deemed to have the most significant emissions reduction and/or adaptation potential. Detail on every action due in that quarter is published as an Appendix to each report.

Once they are approved by Government, progress reports are published online. These reports, as well as detailed tables of actions completed and delayed since CAP19, are available online at: www.gov.ie/en/publication/55fde-climate-action-important-publications/

To date:

·Six Progress Reports were produced under the Climate Action Plan 2019 . These reports show that, overall, 78% of the 500 measures in the Climate Action Plan 2019 due by end-2020 were completed.

·Four progress reports were produced under the Climate Action Plan 2021. Between Q4 2021 and Q4 2022, 79% of the 965 measures due for delivery were completed.

·Four progress reports were produced under Climate Action Plan 2023 (CAP23) . These reports show that, between Q1 and Q4 2023, 65% of the 290 actions due for delivery in 2023 were completed.

·With the publication of Climate Action Plan 2024 (CAP24) on 21 May 2024, progress reporting for Q1 and Q2 2024 was combined. This latest report highlights that 20 of the 33 new actions (c.61%) due in the first two quarters of 2024 under CAP24 were completed by the end of Q2.

In preparation of CAP23, a separate legacy exercise was conducted on all 205 delayed actions listed in the Q4 2022 Progress Report from CAP21. These actions were carried forward for consideration in drafting the new Annex of Actions for CAP23. A separate table was published that details how both delayed measures from 2022 and actions listed in CAP21 for delivery later than 2022 were accounted for in the preparation of CAP23 or if they were actioned elsewhere.

For CAP24, a report on legacy actions, those not completed in 2023, was published alongside the Q4 2023 Progress Report. Delayed actions deemed to be of higher impact were retained for progress reporting in Q1 2024 and beyond, until completion, alongside new CAP24 actions. By the end of Q2 2024 21 of 47 reportable legacy actions form CAP23 had been completed in the first half of 2024.

Publication of the Q3 2024 progress report under CAP24 (including reporting on legacy CAP23 actions) will be combined with results from Q4 2024 which are currently being compiled. Once finalised, this combined Q3/Q4 progress report will be presented to Government for its consideration and approval for publication.

The breakdown of all CAP actions that are completed, are in progress and/or remain outstanding, can be found online in detailed Excel tables at: www.gov.ie/en/publication/55fde-climate-action-important-publications/