Government’s failure to prepare for Ireland’s changed climate reality will hurt ordinary people hardest – Pa Daly TD

Sinn Féin spokesperson on Climate, the Environment and Energy, Pa Daly TD, has slammed the government for failing to prepare for the impact of the climate crisis, leaving ordinary workers and families exposed to potentially disastrous consequences.

He called on them to heed expert warnings and urgently introduce adaptation measures.

Commenting on a number of reports published today, Teachta Daly said:

“Today’s reports from the Climate Change Advisory Council, the World Meteorological Association and Mét Eireann make for some stark reading.

“Irreversible human-induced climate change is spiralling globally, yet Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael have completely failed to prepare.

“2024 was the warmest year on record. Concentrations of greenhouse gas emissions were at an all-time high.

“As a result, extreme weather events are becoming all the more common. It’s the ‘new normal’ that this government has turned a blind eye to.

“This was nowhere more clear than in the aftermath of the recent storm Éowyn. Households the length and breadth of the state were left out in the cold by this government.

“The reality is they have completely failed to prepare Ireland’s infrastructure despite repeated warnings that it must do so.

“This is not good enough. The government must urgently take proactive action to improve Ireland’s preparedness in response to climate risks.

“Ordinary workers, families and communities must be protected and supported in the face of these looming threats.

“It is not good enough to kick the can down the road. That is what landed us here in the first place – decades of inaction and mismanagement from successive Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael governments.

“Extreme weather is only going to grow more frequent and intense. There is no choice but to act.”