TDs and Senators from the Green Party will consider a six-page letter from Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil overnight.
It comes after Leo Varadkar and Micheál Martin invited Eamon Ryan to further talks on forming a Government.
In a six page letter, they set out their replies to the 17 questions the Green Party last week said it needed answered before it would consider entering talks.
Transport
Responding to the demand for 20% of transport spending to be set aside for walking and cycling, the letter commits to an increase in spending - but asks for discussion on how it should be done.
It also remains to be seen whether a commitment to a 2:1 ratio of expenditure for public transport to roads - not including spending on maintenance and upkeep - will satisfy the Green's demand for just over 53% of transport spending to be earmarked for public transport.
Emissions
The major sticking point may prove to be the Green’s call for a 7% annual reduction in carbon emissions.
The letter falls short of committing to it – and instead invites Deputy Ryan to talks to “understand and tease out” how the target could be achieved.
Eh, sorry now, but there’s a 157 page cross party Oireachtas report that discusses the ‘how’ of the bare minimum commitment the Green Party asked for to enter negotiations. If FFFG are not committing to even that 7% and still ‘just asking questions’ it’s clear greens should walk. https://t.co/5VMcC2EwBt
— Lorna Bogue (@LornaBogue) April 29, 2020
Speaking this morning, Mr Varadkar said the target is “extremely ambitious” but insisted that “we accept that we need to be more ambitious when it comes to climate change.”
“We would be interested in taking to them about how we might achieve a more ambitious target than the current one,” he said.
“Perhaps even a 7% one but we don’t want to commit to a target that can’t be done.
“As well as that, we want to understand what impact achieving that target would have on poverty, on unemployment and on the rural economy – because we are going to struggle on all those areas in the next couple years
“So, we want to see it in the round but we are up for more ambitious targets on climate action.”
Renewables
The letter does include commitments to an ambitious programme of development and investment in renewable energy and says the parties are “open to” a ban on gas exploration in Irish waters.
It says the two parties will commit to “taking a more interventionist approach to the housing market,” ending Direct Provision and to discussing a Universal Basic Income trial during the lifetime of the Government.
The FFFG response to the Green Party Qs is absolutely wocious.
On housing, on DP, on LNG, and on the clear inability to see that the way out of this crisis is through environmental action.
What a joke 👎👎
— Saoirse McHugh (@saoirse_mchugh) April 29, 2020
Many of the commitments include caveats calling for further discussion and some in the Green Party have already slammed the document – including Cllr Lorna Bogue, election candidate Saoirse McHugh and others at the grassroots level.
Under Green Party rules, any agreement to enter government requires the votes of two-thirds of the party.
The Parliamentary Party is due to discuss the letter again tomorrow afternoon.
Additional reporting from Seán Defoe
