Paul Murphy accuses government of climate hypocrisy
Paul Murphy criticised the government's climate rhetoric in a speech, accusing the Taoiseach of insincerity over COP27 statements. He said Ireland is on course to miss legally binding emissions targets and accused leaders of prioritising corporate profits over effective climate action.
Targets and emissions
The Taoiseach cited legally binding targets of 51% emissions reductions by 2030 and a commitment to become climate neutral by 2050. Paul Murphy said those pledges are hollow, arguing that emissions in agriculture, electricity and transport are rising this year rather than falling and that the government is failing to meet its targets.
Budget measures and data centres
Murphy highlighted a budget provision of 30,000 euros a month to data centres, which he said now use more electricity than all rural homes in Ireland combined. He also criticised the government's continued commitment to an industrialised model of agriculture, calling it the country's number one emitter.
Loss and damage and COP demands
Murphy said last year's refusal by the EU, with the backing of the Irish Government, to support a loss and damage fund at COP26 was a betrayal of people in the Global South. He pressed for unequivocal backing for the establishment of a loss and damage fund at COP27 and raised the human cost of climate impacts, citing floods in Pakistan, drought in China and famine risk in the Horn of Africa.
Energy Charter Treaty concerns
He warned that Ireland is party to the Energy Charter Treaty, an investor-state dispute settlement system he described as protecting fossil fuel company profits. Murphy noted that oil, gas and coal firms have been awarded over $100 billion under the treaty and cited several European states that have withdrawn or announced intentions to withdraw, asking whether Ireland will follow suit.
Systemic critique and proposed change
Murphy accused political leaders and big business of saying one thing and doing another - "they are lying" - and argued this is because they are wedded to an "ecocidal capitalist system" driven by fossil fuel and agribusiness profits. He said this necessitates overthrowing the system and called for eco-socialist change to address the climate crisis.
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Taoiseach made a fine speech at COP 27, he said if this generation does not step up urgently, future generations will not forgive us. As leaders it is our responsibility to drive the transformation necessary. In Ireland the government has set legally binding emissions reduction targets of 51% by 2030 and has committed Ireland to becoming climate neutral by 2050. The only problem is that he does not mean a word of it. He didn't mention the fact that we're going to miss all of those targets, that this year instead of emissions going down in agriculture, in electricity, in transport, they're actually going up, they're actually increasing. He didn't mention the 30,000 euros a month agreed in the budget to give to data centres responsible now for using more electricity than all of the rural homes in Ireland combined. He didn't mention the continued commitment to the industrialised model of agriculture, which is our number one emitter of carbon and the refusal to move away from it. He didn't mean a word of it, he is a gross hypocrite. He said that the problem for the whole world is that he's not the only one. All the world's leaders are in it together. It's why they can come together and say we're going to save 1.5 and then agree a set of targets nationally which amounts to an increase in temperature of 2.7 degrees and then actually be on track for an increase of something like 3.5 degrees. And those who are suffering the most, the people suffering from the floods in Pakistan, the drought, in China, the hundreds of thousands of people who are facing likely death in the Horn of Africa as a result of famine caused by climate change. Because it's all fine words, but as the UN Secretary General said, the politicians are saying one thing, big businesses are saying one thing, but doing another, simply put, they are lying. And the reason they're lying is because they are wedded to an ecocidal capitalist system, which is based around profits of the big fossil fuel corporations globally, and in this country, based around the profits of big agribusiness. It's why we absolutely have to essentially overthrow this system and need eco-socialist change. I want to raise the point about loss and damage, where last year the EU, with the backing of the Irish Government, betrayed billions of people in the Global South by refusing to back a loss and damage fund at COP26. It was devastating for all those who have been campaigning for so many years, a defining failure of COP26. Rich countries are responsible for 90% of the emissions that are causing climate breakdown, but the most serious effects hit those in the Global South. So loss and damage is once again a crucial issue at COP27. Can we get a clear commitment that the Government will not repeat last year's betrayal and will give unequivocal backing for the establishment of a loss and damage fund at COP27? I also want to deal with the issue of the Energy Charter Treaty. Over the last couple of days we have been treated to all sorts of nonsense by the Taoiseach, telling us how investor court systems are normal, a regular part of trade and so on. Ireland is actually only part of one investor court system at the moment, and that is that under the Energy Charter Treaty. This is a rotten treaty designed to protect energy companies' investments and profits, which in practice means protecting the interests of fossil fuel companies. Through that we are signed up to an investor state dispute settlement system, the only one unless we ratify the CETA investor courts. Oil, gas and coal firms have already been awarded over $100 billion by the Energy Charter Treaties. As countries have sought to curb their emissions, in line with the Paris Climate Agreement after 2015, the number of claims being brought has exploded. For that reason, many European states are leaving the Energy Charter Treaty or have announced that they are going to leave. Italy has withdrawn, other major EU states including Germany, France, Spain, Poland, Slovenia and the Netherlands have announced their intention to withdraw from this unjust environmentally criminal treaty. I would ask the Government, will the Irish state be withdrawing from this anti-environment, anti-worker, pro-fossil fuel company treaty? Thank you. Thank you Deputy Deputy Marcos. Thank you Captain. Thank you Deputy Deputy. 국민 Deputy. Thank you Deputy Deputy Narc Smith. being Deputy fill in the Faculty Verfassungating. Thank you Deputy Marcos, Почему Blocks Assume.
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