Champion the Citizens' Assembly Recommendations

In our view, the most striking recommendations to the Government from the Citizens’ Assembly include:

• The Citizens’ own willingness to pay higher taxes on carbon pollution and their recommendation that the agriculture sector should also apply the ‘polluter pays principle’ to its emissions, such that the resulting revenue is reinvested to support climate friendly agricultural practices for farmers.
• Prioritise public transport investment over new road infrastructure spending at a ratio of no less than 2-to-1. Currently the majority of state investment goes to road building which means more cars and more emissions. 
• Establishment of an independent watchdog with clear powers to make sure the State sets and meets five-yearly targets for emissions reductions. The introduction of such targets were removed from climate legislation by the government before it passed in 2015.
• An end to all State subsidies for peat extraction on a phased basis over the next five years. That would bring peat-firing for electricity to an end a lot sooner than 2030, which is Bord Na Mona’s current plan. An end to subsidies for peat extraction would cover not just the subsidies for burning peat for electricity but the subsidies for burning biomass with peat as well.

The Stop Climate Chaos coalition are calling on the Government to respect the mandate of the Citizens' Assembly by immediately establishing a dedicated Oireachtas Committee to take the recommendations in the report forward, as was done with the Assembly report on the eight amendment to the Constitution.