The European Parliament will vote to give the Paris Climate Change Agreement the green or red light tomorrow.
Under the agreement, Ireland has committed to reduce greenhouse gases by at least 40% by 2030. The vote follows the passing of the agreement by the European Council on Friday.
The first-ever universal and legally binding global climate deal was agreed by 195 countries in Paris last December at the COP21 conference.
The European Parliament wants the European Union to ratify the Paris Climate Change Agreement as soon as possible to ensure it can rapidly enter into force.
Environment Committee Chairman Giovanni La Via said the ratification of the agreement would allow the European Union to remain a leader in climate action.
I welcome the decision by Environment Ministers to allow for a timely EU ratification.
“This decision will permit Parliament to conclude the agreement and will send a strong signal and highlight the leadership of the EU and its Member States and their continuing efforts to address climate change at international level.
“The prospect that the Paris Agreement might enter into force without the EU as a signatory, considering the EU’s leadership on the fight against climate change, its role in the Kyoto Protocol, and its continuous efforts towards a subsequent universal treaty, would have been unthinkable,” he said.
La Via said the Parliament is focusing its efforts on delivering concrete policies that will enable the reduction of Europe’s green house gases.
“The reform of our carbon market, the recent proposals for curbing emissions from the building, transport and agriculture sectors, and those on land-use and forestry will be discussed in Parliament in the coming months,” he said.