Climate Action Plan
Dail Éireann — 2026-04-16
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Darragh O'Brien (FF), Dublin Fingal East

I fully accept the need to provide clarity on timeframes. I just want to explain what is happening on this. The last two climate action plans for 2024 and 2025 are still in place and the actions within them are still being worked through. I want to enable us to set climate priorities. The Deputy has previously asked me in the House about our climate targets. I have just said very clearly that while our projections and carbon emissions are going in the right direction, it does not look like we will hit our 2030 target. Having said that, we need to see how we can bridge that gap between the projected reduction and the target itself. That is why CAP 26 is so critical.
I want us to look at the most impactful measures that we can make and to get off an administrative hamster wheel on this whereby one plan is being produced while the actions of the previous year's plan are still being worked through. I have had this discussion with the Climate Change Advisory Council, CCAC. I have met it in plenary. A new chair, Alex White, has been appointed to the CCAC. I meet the environmental pillar regularly, including just couple of weeks ago, and they understand that too. What are the most important measures we can take in CAP 26 to help us bridge the gap and continue the progress that has been made in many areas, no less so than on the energy generation piece? That is a genuine thing and I want people to understand what CAP 26 is and for it to be a readable document. Notwithstanding all the really good work across government on the publication of the plan, it is fair to say, as is acknowledged by the environment pillar as well, that what is really important is how many people actually know what is in the plan itself. I want to bring that down to a grassroots level. That is the level of work that we are doing.
We are not looking to delay it at all. I intend to bring options on climate priorities to the Government in the coming weeks and that will flow into CAP 26. That is the timeframe. We are talking a matter of weeks for the climate priorities and following from that will be the climate action plan.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-04-16/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:49+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-04-16