Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 8 February 2024
215. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to outline what action is being taken to implement the recommendation of the Citizens Assembly on Biodiversity that Ireland adopt the human right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment and the recommendation that the legal rights of nature be recognised via a constitutional referendum. [5957/24]
View answer216. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage whether he intends to establish an expert group with resources to design and draft the potential question or questions on the rights of nature as recommended by the Joint Oireachtas Committee in its report on the Citizens Assembly on Biodiversity. [5958/24]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 215 and 216 together.
The Citizens’ Assembly on Biodiversity Loss (CABL) was convened as a commitment in the Programme for Government, in recognition of the vital role that biodiversity plays in the continued health of our society, economy, species and planet. The Assembly agreed 159 recommendations, including 73 high level and 86 sectoral specific recommendations, reflecting the depth and breadth of the topics discussed. The recommendations of the Citizens’ Assembly were then deliberated by the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Environment and Climate Action, who held a series of engagements with stakeholders. The Joint Oireachtas Committee published their report in December 2023, containing 86 recommendations which the Committee feel are vital to ensure that the biodiversity crisis in Ireland is addressed in a meaningful way.
The 4th National Biodiversity Action Plan 2023-2030 was launched in January and addresses a number of the key recommendations of both the Citizens’ Assembly and the Joint Oireachtas Committee. The Plan provides for a mechanism by which the recommendations of the Citizens’ Assembly will be considered by Government, including an action for the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) to explore the ways in which the rights of nature could be formally recognised. A report outlining departmental responses to the Citizens’ Assembly on Biodiversity Loss will be laid before the Oireachtas in the coming months.
