A Trillion Here, A Trillion There

Ireland has a lot of problems at the moment, none more urgent than the homelessness, hospital and police crises. While the government will claim that lack of resources is the root cause of these problems, will they have a problem in finding money when it comes to the Green cause which has taken root in Europe and America ?

This article from Standpoint Magazine explains the amounts involved :

Between now and 2020, the Green Climate Fund is supposed to transfer at least $100 billion a year in support of developing nations’ decarbonisation efforts. Before COP21 opened, the GCF had received pledges of $70 million (0.07 per cent of the total). Undaunted, Christiana Figueres, the Costa Rican Marxist academic who is nominally in charge of COP21, now suggests that the developed world should transfer $1 trillion a year. To adapt the late Senator Everett Dirksen: “A trillion here, a trillion there, pretty soon you’re talking real money.”

Funny enough, I don't remember voting on this.

Unfortunately, I cant find it online, but there was a nice graph produced by RTE from their Election 2016 exit poll. It showed a list of issues which concerned voters but the issue of climate change was nowhere to be seen on that list.

While it is true that Ireland has pledged very little so far (about € 2 million and another € 34m in climate related foreign aid), pressure is now on the government to ramp up its "climate finance":

We propose the establishment of a Climate Justice Fund which would be financed from relevant revenue streams such as the Carbon Tax and from ETS auctioning and use this money to meet Ireland’s international climate finance obligations. The establishment of a Climate Justice Fund would serve to ensure Ireland meets its fair share of obligations to provide climate finance without diverting funds from Overseas Development Aid (ODA). It would also allow Ireland to continue to set an example by prioritising adaptation in its climate finance contributions.

Ireland pledged € 175million at the COP21 agreement for 2016-2020. Most likely the carbon tax will be hiked upwards by the new government to pay for it. So poor people in Ireland, who will be pushed further into fuel poverty, will be sending money over to poor people elsewhere, if it ever reaches them.

Climate economics just doesn't add up.