Greens 'jihadists', says Minister

Environment: The Greens were accused of being the jihadists of the environmental movement by Minister for the Environment Dick Roche in his speech to delegates. The Minister also attacked the other Opposition parties, saying they had not produced a single coherent or sustainable environmental policy during the lifetime of the current Dáil.

"The Green Party jihadists of the environmental movement seem hell bent to make Ireland a martyr to their peculiar vision of environmental purity. Their published policies on climate change would bankrupt Ireland and set back the economic gains of the past 20 years.

"Ironically the Greens, while preaching green policies, have opposed the creation of the type of infrastructure that Ireland needs to deliver environmental progress," said Mr Roche.

He accused the Labour Party of being so negative that they clearly wanted to drag Ireland back to the dismal decade of the 1970s.

"Obviously Pyongyang is still where the Rabbitte's heart is. On the environment all we get from Labour is red-faced finger-wagging indignation - all huff no puff!" he said.

Mr Roche added that Fine Gael was a disaster area insofar as policy is concerned. The party's policy in Laois, where it controlled the county council, and its approach to salmon conservation were a demonstration of that.

The Minister maintained that under Fianna Fáil, Ireland had delivered economic growth and at the same time had enhanced it to the extent that the Environmental Performance Index has placed Ireland 10th out of 133 countries.

He said that the Government had already identified policies that will reduce our greenhouse gas emissions by over 14 million tonnes per year while a range of other policy commitments would further reduce Ireland's emissions between now and 2012.

"Between 1990 and 2004 the Irish economy grew by 150 per cent. Our greenhouse gas emissions grew by 23 per cent and we will cut this figure back. In fact, Ireland has successfully decoupled our extraordinary economic growth from our greenhouse gas emissions," he said.