Cabinet Committees
Dail Éireann — 2020-11-24
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Paul Murphy (PBP), Dublin South-West

That is no problem. It sums up the Taoiseach's political philosophy. It flies in the face of history. This Parliament would not exist and we would be a part of the British Empire had there not been a campaign, one with a significant military element. We would not have the right to vote, to join trade unions or to have a minimum wage. Every substantial improvement in living standards and democratic rights for ordinary people has come from campaigns. History demonstrates that. The same applies to climate action. The only reason we have a climate action Bill is environmental campaigners such as school students, strikers, Fridays for Future, Ms Greta Thunberg, etc., putting this matter on the agenda.
The Government's climate action Bill has substantial flaws, though. It is a proposal to pursue carbon reductions and to aim for carbon neutrality by 2050, which will be far too late. It will not do what the science demands. In fact, those who are calling for the Bill to do what the science demands are being accused of ecopopulism by some establishment Green Party members. That is why there is a campaign to fix the Bill. There is an online petition asking that, instead of pursuing a 2050 target, the Bill should tie the Government into achieving complete decarbonisation by 2030, which is what is necessary if we are to avoid a climate disaster. There is a series of other demands concerning the just transition and so on.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2020-11-24/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:48:49+00:00
Sitting date: 2020-11-24