Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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340. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine further to Parliamentary Question No. 297 of 13 May 2025, to confirm that notwithstanding expertise available in agencies under his remit than there are no technical and scientific units directly within his Department specifically tasked with assessing environmental and climate claims for the development of departmental and inter-departmental policy. [27846/25]

Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael)
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The development of policy is based on, among other things, scientific and other evidence, internal and cross-government consultation, consultation with state agencies, public consultation and expert advice from both within the Department and elsewhere.

There are core business areas within the Department that have personnel with the required technical and scientific expertise to inform key policy areas, for example water, air, climate and biodiversity.

No specific unit assesses environmental or climate 'claims' being made by, for example, manufacturers of products or those delivering services.

In the case of practices or technologies that reduce greenhouse gas emissions, these are measured in scientific studies, the results of which are then published in peer-reviewed science journals. This is the basis on which a 'claim' could be made that a certain practice or technology reduces emissions.