I do not think that was a very clear answer at the end. Does the Minister support a fossil fuel non-proliferation treaty? Does he support that or not? If he supports it, is that just something that exists in one part of his mind or is it something he is advocating for within Government as Minister for the environment? His response to COP28 was very poor. He attempted to greenwash the outcome of that to try to pretend we are making progress we are simply not making. It was completely captured by the oil and gas corp…

I did not ask the Minister to sign it.

We are heading for disaster. We are still heading for disaster after COP28. The Minister knows that. In the text are all of these references to low-carbon fuels and carbon capture and storage, which are all premised on this illusion of technology coming to save us that is not coming. That is the oil and gas corporations lulling the world to sleep by saying we will have progress and not to worry, we do not need radical change in our societies and economies which the science says we absolutely do. That is the need fo…

Fossil fuels are going up too. That is the problem.

The programme for Government says it does not make sense to develop LNG import terminals importing fracked gas. However, the energy security review is proposing a floating LNG terminal, and we all know it is not possible to verify whether LNG is fracked. Activist groups like Not Here Not Anywhere and Safety Before LNG are vehemently opposed to this and are determined to fight against it. Whether an LNG terminal is on land or sea, it is still an LNG terminal. If it looks like a duck, if it walks like a duck, if it q…

The Minister, the leader of the Green Party, is saying he is in favour of this. An LNG terminal is an LNG terminal. Okay, it is a floating LNG terminal rather than an LNG terminal on land. The Minister may say this will not lead to any more reliance on fossil fuels and so on, but I do not understand why that would be that the case. The energy security review explicitly states that this can have private involvement or even be a public-private partnership. How is this different from a commercial LNG terminal like Sha…

The security argument is being used by the fossil fuel industry to keep western Europe linked to fossil fuel, to keep us addicted to fossil fuels. The biggest security danger is climate change and that is what we need to keep in mind. The answer is to reduce energy usage where possible, which the Minister is not interested in at all given that he has allowed the data centres to keep expanding, and to shift rapidly to renewable energy, bringing increasing amounts of renewable energy onto the grid. Instead, the Minis…

Just over two weeks ago the Taoiseach was asked whether Ireland would intervene on the side of South Africa against Israel's genocide at the International Court of Justice. He said very clearly that the Government does not intend to do so. He said, "I really think this is an area where we need to be very careful" and that genocide is "something very particular". It was a shameful intervention that put the Irish Government on the side of those states trying to undermine South Africa's case in the ICJ. Fast forward t…

The housing and homelessness crisis is spiralling even further out of control. It is destroying the lives of thousands of families and children across the State. In South Dublin County Council, 1,452 people were registered as homeless in November, including 653 children. All three homeless hubs in Tallaght are now permanently full. We do not just have a social housing list anymore, we have an emergency accommodation waiting list. Every day as a consequence, families are being sent miles away from school and family …

On Monday the Israeli foreign minister met with EU representatives. He showed them a video from a few years ago about plans to build an artificial island off Gaza where, basically, the Palestinians could be put. It caused eyebrows to be raised, even among those who are not very clear in their opposition to the genocide that is currently taking place. If you want a clear signal that Israel intends to continue with the war, the massacre, the onslaught and the genocide, there you have it. Let us be clear, however. Isr…

I move amendment No. 3: In page 12, to delete lines 30 and 31 and substitute the following: “(ii) by the insertion of the following definitions: “ ‘Act of 2014’ means the Companies Act 2014; ‘carbon budget’ has the meaning assigned to it in section 1 of the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Act 2015 (as amended), and means the total amount of greenhouse gas emissions that are permitted during the budget period; ‘climate action plan’ has the meaning assigned to it in section 4(1)(a) of the Climate Action and…

What I heard from the Minister of State is that this is technical and this is not a Bill to amend the objectives, but that is what we are trying to do through the amendment. We are trying to make it such a Bill and are taking the opportunity to change its objectives. The Minister of State is telling us not to worry about that because those objectives are already covered. However, will he explain to me how and why GNI responded to the Minister, Deputy Ryan, to say it was mandated under the Gas Act to supply connecti…

Sorry, if the Ceann Comhairle calls on the Minister of State to respond, can he call me again?

Is that it in total?

I will hear the Minister of State again.

I hear what the Minister of State is saying. I now understand the distinction between his opposition to amendments Nos. 4 and 6. However, even in respect of amendment No. 4, it seems GNI has to abide by and is covered by the climate Bill on a very abstract level. If it were an active function, however, it would mean GNI would turn down some connection requests and would not accept everything because its plan is that it needs to get away from fossil fuels. We should take the opportunity to do this tonight. I would b…

I move amendment No. 4: In page 12, between lines 32 and 33, to insert the following: "(i) in subsection (1)— (I) by the substitution of the following paragraph for paragraph (a): "(a) The Board shall own, operate, develop and maintain a system for the transmission and distribution of natural gas being a system that is carbon budget-aligned, economical and efficient and shall perform its functions in a manner consistent with— (i) the most recent approved climate action plan, (ii) the most recent approved national l…

I move amendment No. 6: In page 13, between lines 39 and 40, to insert the following: "(d) in section 10A— (i) in subsection (4), by the insertion of the following paragraphs after paragraph (h): "(i) the terms and conditions upon which applications for new connections or expansion of the gas network must be assessed to consider the expected emissions profile of the new connection, and of its contribution to the decarbonisation of Ireland’s economy; (j) the terms and conditions upon which an application may be refu…

Over the past number of months across Europe we have seen repression and criminalisation of pro-Palestinian protestors. In Germany, for example, there have been severe police crackdowns and a banning of Palestine solidarity protests on the wrong basis that they are antisemitic. In Britain, we have seen the potential criminalisation of the carrying of flags and of chants, and there is now a report that urges a ban on pro-Palestinian marches. Unfortunately, it looks like some of the same is now coming to Ireland. Yes…

At the weekend, it was reported that the Government is considering the introduction of an Internet tax, that is, a tax of €10 to €15 which will apply to everybody's broadband bills, to replace the TV licence fee. At a rate of €15, that would mean €180 for practically every household in the country. Broadband is not some luxury; it is a necessity. Such a tax would be extremely unjust and regressive. The poorest household in the country would be forced to pay the same as the richest. There have been some murmurs in t…