The Independent politician and TD for the Kerry constituency Danny Healy-Rae has given his response to the Government’s Climate Action Plan that was announced yesterday.
Speaking in the Dáil today, Tuesday, June 18, the Kerry TD noted how he believes these changes are affecting rural Ireland especially working families and farmers.
He said: “This [climate change] policy which you had all the hullabaloo about yesterday has frightened many people again in rural Ireland.
It seems that it is a race now between Fianna Gael and Fianna Fáil to see who will be greener than the greens.
Commenting on the Government’s proposal to move towards electric vehicles, Healy-Rae outlined to Taoiseach Leo Varadkar that “people in rural Ireland cannot manage without a car”.
Continuing, he said: “A lot of your ideas are ridiculous and your targets are ridiculous. What you have to realise is that there are 4.8 million in Ireland which equates to 0.06% of the world’s population.
India and China equate to 40% of the world population and if we were totally emissions free it would only equal just 0.13 of 1% of the world-wide context.
“At the same time we are all living under the same sky; and why are you imposing and suggesting these targets for people, especially for working families and farmers in rural Ireland?”
Concluding, he said: “Do you know that you are frightening the daylight out of the people and you have already blackguarded them badly enough?”