Government has yet to agree its Climate Action Plan

More than a quarter of the measures set out in the legally-binding plan have not been met on time

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said that the targets in the Climate Action Plan are ambitious, but he is examining whether the plan's implementation would benefit from more oversight. Picture: Maxwells

The Government has yet to agree the Climate Action Plan which will set out how the legally binding carbon budgets and agreed sectoral emissions ceilings will be achieved.

The plan is to be published on Wednesday, and sources said that while there is still some "fine-tuning" of the document there is "no major impasse" to be cleared.

Cabinet will meet on Wednesday this week, with the climate subcommittee due to meet on Tuesday, with Environment Minister Eamon Ryan in Brussels for the Transport, Telecommunications and Energy Council. Speaking in Dublin today, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said that his office would oversee implementation of the plan. 

An update on the 2021 plan published in June showed that more than a quarter of the measures set down in the Government's Climate Action Plan have not been met on time. 

The Taoiseach said that the targets in the plan are ambitious, but he is examining whether the plan's implementation would benefit from more oversight.

"I think we have very ambitious climate plans and climate action targets," he said.  "And when you have very ambitious targets, they're very hard to meet. We are meeting three quarters of them. 

"I'd like to see that improve over the course of next year. And one of the things that I'm discussing with Minister Ryan and my officials at the Department of the Taoiseach is whether we can strengthen oversight and the climate action plan from the centre, from the Taoiseach's office.

There's a lot of mechanisms already. There's taskforces, there's a climate action delivery board. 

"We're going to review that over the course of the next few weeks and see if there's a way that we can have a stronger mechanism to make sure that the plan gets implemented because that's the most important thing."

Mr Varadkar said he was confident the plan would be agreed before the end of the week.

"Let's not forget what this is all about. We need to look after our planet better and I'm determined that we should be the generation of politicians that passes on the planet in a better condition than we inherited it — both in terms of climate and biodiversity — and this is Ireland's contribution to that wider effort."

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Sources said there is no question that the overall emissions cuts for different sectors, agreed earlier this year, would be touched and said the fact the plan has not been published is down to "details".

The Government in July signed off on the cuts that will be required across each sector in the next 7.5 years after days of lengthy discussions between the three coalition parties finally reached a conclusion.

The sectoral emissions ceiling for the Land-Use, Land-Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF) sector has been deferred for 18 months to allow for the completion of the Land-Use Strategy.

These new ceilings, and accompanying actions, will be reflected in the Climate Action Plan 2023, due to be published later this year. 

The implementation challenges highlighted in this progress report provide valuable lessons in the development of the 2023 Climate Action Plan.

Meanwhile, Tourism Minister Catherine Martin has welcomed the European Commission’s adoption of Ireland’s Territorial Just Transition Plan and Associated Programme for 2021-2027 which will see €68m given to the midlands for tourism.

The tourism element of the Just Transition Plan includes allocations of €38m under Regenerative Tourism business supports and €30m for a Tourism Trails Network.

Ms Martin said it is "a significant step for regenerative tourism development in Ireland, as we work to reduce our emissions in line with the Programme for Government".