Dáil Passes Critical Infrastructure Bill 132-15, Weakening Climate Law and Environmental Rights

The Dáil passed the Critical Infrastructure Bill 132-15, a stark contrast to 2022 climate law support. This Bill, passed with undue haste and no pre-legislative scrutiny, aims to weaken environmental rights and remove climate impediments to new infrastructure, particularly roads.

Minister for Public Expenditure Jack Chambers stated the Bill intends to undermine recent Supreme Court and Belfast High Court decisions, which recognized the importance of climate assessments for major projects under section 15 of the climate law. Chambers seeks to avoid legal disputes but may create contradictions, as the climate law's section 15 and ministerial accountability for emissions targets remain.

This Bill creates a situation where the State and Ministers have climate targets, but An Coimisiún Pleanála is invited to disregard them for infrastructure decisions. This approach prioritizes new roads over public transport, despite advanced planning for Cork metropolitan rail, BusConnects, and Luas projects, which have public support. The Galway ring road approval, coinciding with the Bill's introduction, exemplifies this, potentially hindering the Galway Luas.

Minister for Transport Darragh O’Brien faces a significant challenge due to his sector's emissions gap. A roads-based approach increases emissions and leads to higher costs, poorer health, more road deaths, and gridlock, undermining public transport. Many public transport projects are unfunded in the revised national plan. A proper Dáil debate on climate, an updated climate plan, and Oireachtas transport committee scrutiny of O’Brien's transport emissions strategy are needed.