Provisional Northern Ireland local authority collected municipal waste management statistics for July to September 2024 have been published today by the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA).
An independent review of the Northern Ireland Policing Board has been received by Justice Minister Naomi Long.
Economy Minister Conor Murphy today launched a consultation on changes to how the costs associated with new connections to the electricity distribution network are recovered.
Green Party co-leader Carla Denyer MP has welcomed a Scottish court ruling that government approval of the giant new Rosebank and Jackdaw developments was unlawful because it did not account for the significant emissions that would be caused by burning the fields’ oil and gas.
Carla Denyer said: “This is a victory not just for the campaigners who have been fighting against new oil drilling at Rosebank and Jackdaw, but for common sense. The science is clear and the stakes are high: there can be no new oil and gas developments if we are to have a chance of staying within safe climate limits.
“We’ve already seen the effects of at least 1.2°C degrees of global heating: from record-breaking heatwaves on almost every continent and deadly floods taking people’s lives and livelihoods across the world. In this context, it would be morally scandalous to allow fossil fuel companies like Equinor to start extracting from new fields – for the sake of their own profits and regardless of the consequences for the rest of us.
“Aside from being a climate crime, opening new oil and gas fields like Rosebank goes entirely against what’s needed to strengthen the UK’s energy security, lower bills, and protect workers – which is to invest in a rapid and fair transition to renewable industries which have a long-term future.
“If this government is serious about protecting us from the climate crisis and securing a liveable future for our children, it will revoke Rosebank’s license so that there is absolutely no question of this development going ahead. It must also refuse consent for the 13 other oil and gas drilling projects licensed by the previous government, and send a clear signal to the fossil fuel industry that they have no future in the UK.”
Responding to Rachel Reeves’ speech on economic growth, Green Party Co-Leader, Adrian Ramsay MP, said
“The idea that we have to choose between economic prosperity and safeguarding our children’s future is absolute nonsense – in fact it’s quite the opposite.
“Expanding airport capacity would wipe out all the benefits of the Government’s clean power plan, and won’t provide any benefits for ordinary people.
“The idea that expanding Heathrow can happen in line with legal, environmental & climate objectives, while meeting rules on carbon emissions, noise and air quality is just fantasy thinking.
“At one point in her speech, the Chancellor said net zero is the opportunity of the century.
“She’s right about that, yet much of what she announced will take us further away from net zero.
“Her strategy doesn’t add up and it felt more as if she was chasing headlines than chasing a sustainable, fairer future for the UK.”