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Dáil Éireann debate -
Thursday, 28 Mar 2019

Vol. 981 No. 2

Petroleum and Other Minerals Development (Amendment) (Climate Emergency Measures) Bill 2018: Motion (Resumed) [Private Members]

The following motion was moved by Deputy Bríd Smith on Tuesday, 26 March 2019:
That Dáil Éireann:
notes that:
— in February 2018, Dáil Éireann agreed the second reading motion of the Petroleum and Other Minerals Development (Amendment) (Climate Emergency Measures) Bill 2018 and referred the Bill to the Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment;
— pursuant to Standing Order 141, detailed scrutiny was undertaken by the Joint Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment prior to Committee Stage consideration;
— in December 2018, the Joint Committee divided on the Question on the draft detailed scrutiny report (which recommended that the Bill progress to Select Committee consideration), and, as there was an equality of votes, the Question was, pursuant to Standing Orders, decided in the negative;
— at a subsequent Joint Committee meeting in February 2019, an amendment to the scrutiny report was agreed in the following terms:
‘The Joint Committee having completed its scrutiny of the Bill has to report that it finds itself unable to recommend for or against the Bill proceeding to Third Stage.’;
and
— when a separate vote was taken to adopt the amended report and lay it before both Houses, there was again an equality of votes and the question was decided in the negative and the Committee therefore arrived at no decision;
further notes that Standing Order 141, while allowing a Joint Committee to undertake detailed scrutiny, did not anticipate that the Joint Committee would fail to report to both Houses; and
therefore agrees that the requirement for the Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment (having embarked on scrutiny in Joint Committee, pursuant to Standing Order 141(c) to report, prior to Committee Stage, on its detailed scrutiny of the Petroleum and Other Minerals Development (Amendment) (Climate Emergency Measures) Bill 2018, is hereby discharged.
Debate resumed on amendment No. 1:
To delete all words after “Dáil Éireann” and substitute the following:
“recognises that climate change is one of the most pressing issues facing humanity on a global scale and it is vital that Ireland plays a strong role in addressing it;
notes that Ireland is expected to only achieve a single per cent reduction by 2020 against its non-Emissions Trading Scheme target of a 20 per cent reduction;
acknowledges that there is a need to step up Ireland’s progress and ambition in this area;
welcomes the significant increase in the share of electricity from renewable sources which now account for 30 per cent of total electricity demand, and calls on the Government to set an ambitious target for 2030;
notes the need to reduce fossil fuel consumption across the entire economy in order to make progress towards the national transition objective of a competitive, low-carbon, climate-resilient and environmentally sustainable economy by 2050;
further recognises that:
- the transition to a low-carbon economy is a transition for all of Ireland’s citizens and, therefore, its socio-economic impacts must be carefully managed; and
- the response to climate change will require difficult choices and that every person, community, business, home, farm and school will have to make changes in their day-today activities;
recalls the Citizens’ Assembly report on how the State can make Ireland a leader in tackling climate change, including the 17 recommendations made by the members of the Assembly;
also recalls the establishment of the Oireachtas Special Joint Committee on Climate Action to consider the report and recommendations of the Citizens’ Assembly;
looks forward to all-party support for the Special Joint Committee’s report, its conclusions and recommendations; and
calls on the Government to urgently bring forward an all-of-Government plan which will set out the actions that must be taken to make Ireland a leader in responding to climate change and providing for a significant increase over the next decade in the level of renewable energy in our energy mix."
- (Minister of State at the Department of Health, Deputy Jim Daly)

I must now deal with a postponed division relating to the motion regarding scrutiny of the Petroleum and Other Minerals Development (Amendment) (Climate Emergency Measures) Bill 2018. On Tuesday, 26 March 2019, on the question that the amendment to the motion be agreed to, a division was claimed and in accordance with Standing Order 70(2), that division must be taken now.

Amendment again put:
The Dáil divided: Tá, 54; Níl, 82; Staon, 0.

  • Bailey, Maria.
  • Barrett, Seán.
  • Breen, Pat.
  • Brophy, Colm.
  • Bruton, Richard.
  • Burke, Peter.
  • Byrne, Catherine.
  • Canney, Seán.
  • Cannon, Ciarán.
  • Carey, Joe.
  • Corcoran Kennedy, Marcella.
  • Coveney, Simon.
  • Creed, Michael.
  • D'Arcy, Michael.
  • Daly, Jim.
  • Deasy, John.
  • Deering, Pat.
  • Doherty, Regina.
  • Donohoe, Paschal.
  • Durkan, Bernard J.
  • English, Damien.
  • Farrell, Alan.
  • Fitzgerald, Frances.
  • Fitzmaurice, Michael.
  • Grealish, Noel.
  • Griffin, Brendan.
  • Harris, Simon.
  • Harty, Michael.
  • Heydon, Martin.
  • Humphreys, Heather.
  • Kyne, Seán.
  • Lowry, Michael.
  • Madigan, Josepha.
  • McEntee, Helen.
  • McGrath, Finian.
  • McGrath, Mattie.
  • McHugh, Joe.
  • McLoughlin, Tony.
  • Mitchell O'Connor, Mary.
  • Moran, Kevin Boxer.
  • Murphy, Dara.
  • Naughton, Hildegarde.
  • Neville, Tom.
  • Nolan, Carol.
  • Noonan, Michael.
  • O'Connell, Kate.
  • O'Donovan, Patrick.
  • O'Dowd, Fergus.
  • Phelan, John Paul.
  • Ring, Michael.
  • Rock, Noel.
  • Ross, Shane.
  • Stanton, David.
  • Zappone, Katherine.

Níl

  • Adams, Gerry.
  • Aylward, Bobby.
  • Boyd Barrett, Richard.
  • Brady, John.
  • Brassil, John.
  • Breathnach, Declan.
  • Broughan, Thomas P.
  • Browne, James.
  • Buckley, Pat.
  • Burton, Joan.
  • Byrne, Thomas.
  • Cahill, Jackie.
  • Calleary, Dara.
  • Casey, Pat.
  • Cassells, Shane.
  • Chambers, Jack.
  • Chambers, Lisa.
  • Collins, Joan.
  • Collins, Michael.
  • Collins, Niall.
  • Connolly, Catherine.
  • Coppinger, Ruth.
  • Cowen, Barry.
  • Cullinane, David.
  • Curran, John.
  • Daly, Clare.
  • Doherty, Pearse.
  • Donnelly, Stephen.
  • Dooley, Timmy.
  • Ellis, Dessie.
  • Ferris, Martin.
  • Fitzpatrick, Peter.
  • Fleming, Sean.
  • Funchion, Kathleen.
  • Gallagher, Pat The Cope.
  • Haughey, Seán.
  • Healy, Seamus.
  • Howlin, Brendan.
  • Kelleher, Billy.
  • Kelly, Alan.
  • Kenny, Gino.
  • Kenny, Martin.
  • Lawless, James.
  • MacSharry, Marc.
  • McConalogue, Charlie.
  • McDonald, Mary Lou.
  • McGrath, Michael.
  • McGuinness, John.
  • Mitchell, Denise.
  • Moynihan, Aindrias.
  • Moynihan, Michael.
  • Munster, Imelda.
  • Murphy O'Mahony, Margaret.
  • Murphy, Catherine.
  • Murphy, Eugene.
  • Murphy, Paul.
  • Naughten, Denis.
  • O'Brien, Darragh.
  • O'Brien, Jonathan.
  • O'Callaghan, Jim.
  • O'Dea, Willie.
  • O'Keeffe, Kevin.
  • O'Loughlin, Fiona.
  • O'Reilly, Louise.
  • O'Sullivan, Jan.
  • O'Sullivan, Maureen.
  • Ó Broin, Eoin.
  • Ó Caoláin, Caoimhghín.
  • Ó Cuív, Éamon.
  • Ó Snodaigh, Aengus.
  • Penrose, Willie.
  • Pringle, Thomas.
  • Ryan, Brendan.
  • Ryan, Eamon.
  • Scanlon, Eamon.
  • Shortall, Róisín.
  • Smith, Brendan.
  • Smith, Bríd.
  • Stanley, Brian.
  • Tóibín, Peadar.
  • Troy, Robert.
  • Wallace, Mick.

Staon

Tellers: Tá, Deputies Seán Kyne and Tony McLoughlin; Níl, Deputies Bríd Smith and Gino Kenny.
Amendment declared lost.
Motion agreed to.
Sitting suspended at 2.05 p.m. and resumed at 2.45 p.m.
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