Government will miss deadline to publish climate bill in first 100 days

Climate Minister Eamon Ryan has previously pointed to the bill as a potential watershed moment in Irish politics, likening it to TK Whitaker's 1958 First Programme for Economic Expansion. Picture:Gareth Chaney/Collins

The draft Climate Action Bill is expected to be brought to Cabinet on Tuesday, narrowly missing the Government's pledge to publish it in the first 100 days of its lifetime.

The bill is viewed as a key plank in Ireland's climate response and will define how five-year carbon budgets will be set. The Government anticipates that every sector will contribute to achieving reductions of up to 7% per annum in Ireland's carbon output. It will establish a Climate Action Council, which will advise on Ireland's climate change response. Green Party sources, however, say they are focused on whether a just climate transition is enshrined in the law, after the party voted against enshrining it as a party principle over the weekend.