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Environment Minister Phil Hogan’s announcement of a firm
timetable for the adoption of national policy and legislation
on climate change has been widely welcomed, even by his critics.
Friends of the Earth director Oisín Coghlan said while the
timetable “lacks urgency”, it sets out “in impressive detail”
a step-by-step plan to pass climate legislation by the end
of next year - with a view to meeting EU targets for 2020.
The roadmap,
which foresees publication of the heads of a Climate Bill
in the last quarter of this year, “provides welcome certainty
and clarity about the Government’s commitment to passing a
climate law and outlines the opportunities for public participation”.
Mr Coghlan added that publication of the timetable was due
“in no small part due to the vigilance of the Oireachtas environment
committee”, chaired by Ciarán Lynch TD (Labour), which called
on the Minister last month to clarify his plans in this area.
Mr Lynch claimed credit for the committee “in forcing the
pace on this legislation” and said the road map “provides
clear and detailed steps that Ireland will take over the coming
years in formulating robust policy and legislation to help
cut greenhouse gas emissions”.
Although the committee agreed with Mr Hogan that there were
“no easy answers” to achieving the “steep emission reduction
path which Ireland and other developed countries must follow
in the period to 2050”, the road map provided “clear and detailed”
steps.
“It is a measurable approach which lays out in detail how
the implementation of climate change legislation will be achieved,”
Mr Lynch said - adding that this was an example of the Oireachtas
reform programme where committees could work to progress legislation.
“We are particularly heartened about the key role the committee
will have in helping to develop policy and ... engage on actual
options for policy development when it will provide its views
on the National Economic and Social Council’s report on national
climate policy.”
He said the committee would have a “central role” in the
policy development process “- most importantly on the critical
issue of coming to a clear national understanding of how we
will meet our binding EU and wider international mitigation
commitments”.
Mr Hogan’s 'work programme' includes public consultations
in the first half of this year, followed by publication of
an initial report by the National Economic and Social Council
on potential policies and the development of heads of a Climate
Bill by the end of this year.
The council would then produce a final report for consideration
by the Oireachtas committee and heads of a Bill in the first
half of 2013, Mr Hogan said.
IBEC, the business lobby group, welcomed
the the roadmap, saying it had “consistently argued
that relevant government departments and State agencies need
to work together to develop ... a cost-effective plan to meet
the very challenging 2020 mitigation targets”.
Neil Walker, IBEC’s head of environment policy, said the
recent UN climate conference in Durban had “given impetus
to the European Commission’s longer-term policy goals”. However
a “key consideration” would be Ireland’s economic competitiveness.
Source - The Irish Times
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