Eamon Ryan confident Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael will agree to ambitious climate targets
Eamon Ryan says Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael have done "a lot of work" in order to commit to the 7% reduction emissions target.
The two larger parties sent commitments to The Green Party over the weekend that they would agree to Eamon Ryan's party's red line on the emissions target in order to enter formal government formation talks.
It is understood Mr Ryan had to go back to Micheál Martin and Leo Varadkar on Friday to have the commitment cemented in order to get his party over the line on entering talks, as the group was split on the issue.
Mr Ryan, Mr Varadkar and Mr Martin are to meet this morning in Agriculture House on Kildare Street for the first time to map out how the talks will be structured.
Mr Ryan, who campaigned on getting "Fine Gael out" during February's election, says now the Covid-19 crisis has sparked a change in Irish politics and the opportunity for more environmentalism in policy.
"I think that what's important is what has changed in the last few months," he said.
"We've seen those parties committing now to be ambitious and commit to measures that would bring a 7% cut in emissions each year and also recognising that this has to be good, and part of recovery that we make.
We have a straight answer now and they've done a lot of work on this and said; 'Yes, we are committed to that sort of ambition'.
"This will only work if it works for every part of the country, energising our local communities and businesses and society, that map for recovery is where we need to go.
"I believe both parties recognise that now and it's our job to make sure we get the map right."
Mr Ryan says "there has to be" a government before mid-June, and says talks will go on for a short number of weeks.
"That has to be discussed with other parties today, but it will not take a matter of days to do, it will take a short number of weeks," Mr Ryan said on Morning Ireland.
"We need to get it right, all parties have to agree and we need to get the economic part right.
"It's essential that we get people back to work, we need to get small businesses back into business and set a path that sees the economy recover, even as we manage this health crisis into the next year, and to get that right twill take an amount of time."
Mr Ryan's party has been dogged by reports for weeks about tension within the group, with deputy leader Catherine Martin confirming over the weekend that she voted against going into formal talks with Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil.
"That's perfectly normal and appropriate politics," Mr Ryan said.
"That's a healthy thing in any political system, I see that as a strength, that you can have different opinions but agree, what we do agree on, is how we map that recovery that we get out of the immediate crisis but also prepare ourselves for the crisis coming of climate change.
I hope we can use the same solidarity and learn from Covid-19 crisis within our party and other parties and as a people to map our way out of this.
'I never pointed the finger at the Green Party'
Meanwhile, Tánaiste Simon Coveney has defended comments he made last week about climate change and agriculture and the Green Party’s demands for forming a government.
In an interview in
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“Nothing has been ruled out effectively. But, there are some things you simply can’t say yes to without figuring out how it’s going to be done,” he said.
Speaking on RTÉ , Mr Coveney said he had been asked would he sign up to an agreement and he said he would not if it “decimated” rural Ireland.
I never pointed the finger at the Green Party.
The Tánaiste said that the government needed to show people that they can be ambitious about climate change. “Eamon Ryan is right that there will have to be radical changes, but we have to bring people with us.”
The challenge is to be ambitious, he said, but “we know what would happen if we lost the public,” he added. “We saw what happened with the water charges.”
The challenge is to work together, to be ambitious, he said.
“We believe that is achievable. Richard Bruton has put a very credible climate change document in place.” It will involve changes in approach, but a “quick fix” is not the answer.
Mr Coveney said the government is already committed to significant reductions.
“We need to do that in a way that involves farm families.”
However, he warned that there will need to be significant changes to the sector and agriculture will need to be reshaped.
“We will have to bring people with us.
That’s what the next few weeks will be about.
