Sinn Féin spokesperson on Climate Action, Communications Networks and Transport Darren O’Rourke today welcomed the decision by the Supreme Court to quash the National Mitigation Plan and said it was now an opportunity for the government to bring forward an ambitious and detailed plan, rooted in climate justice, that will help transition to a low carbon economy.

Teachta O’Rourke said: “When the National Mitigation Plan was published back in 2017, Sinn Féin said it was a rehash of previous commitments, short on detail or new ideas and would not guarantee that the state meets its international obligations on the reduction of emissions.

“The judgement of the Supreme Court today vindicates that position, quashing it due to the lack of detail in it.

“We called on the last government to radically revise the National Mitigation Plan and get serious about achieving its emissions targets.

“Unfortunately, they would not listen to us, to NGOs or to experts in the field, and proceeded ahead with a plan that was wholly inadequate. 

“I want to commend Friends of the Irish Environment for bringing this important case that has exposed the blasé approach of successive governments to the greatest threat we all face, climate change.

“Years have now been wasted, so the Minister must act on this judgement urgently and bring forward a new, detailed and ambitious plan, rooted in climate justice, that will outline how the state will transition to a low carbon economy.”