'We are giving steroids to the weather, so the weather is landing stronger punches'

Storm Éowyn was the most expensive storm-related insurance event in Irish history, with claims in excess of €301m. File picture 

Successive governments have “given steroids to the weather”, allowing it to land “stronger punches” by not taking action on climate change, resulting in wetter seasons, more intense storms, and increasingly dangerous animal diseases.

The Climate Change Advisory Council’s latest report said that, as well as six of the 10 wettest ever autumns occurring in the past 25 years, the shifting climate is leading to conditions that allow the likes of avian flu and ash dieback to spread.