Councillor opposes nomination of Greta Thunberg for Freedom of the City

At the Dublin City Council monthly meeting last night Independent Councillor Nial Ring said the awarding of the Freedom of Dublin City to Greta Thunberg is a “shameful deflection” from Ireland’s missed climate targets.

“I fully respect the right of the Lord Mayor to make a nomination for the freedom of the city,” Councillor Ring said.

“However, in this case the nomination is, in my opinion, coming from the Green Party hierarchy rather from Lord Mayor Conroy herself.

“It is, in my opinion, no coincidence that the nomination of Greta Thunberg comes a few days after the Government was slammed by the EPA for our well below par efforts in decarbonisation across all sectors

“In the cold light of day, I believe Greta will reflect on this nomination and the fact that she is being used as headline fodder.

“As a very principled person, I have no doubt she will  ask herself how she could accept an award from the capital city of a country which the Taoiseach himself admits is a “laggard” when it comes to climate change, the capital city of a country which has set carbon budgets and sectoral emission ceilings, which signed up to the Paris Agreement and the UN sustainable development goals, which has national and city climate action plans as well as a National Adaptation Framework – all of which are being given lip service to at best and being ignored at worst – not one target will be met according to the EPA.

“The numbers don’t lie!

“Great will realise she is being used.

“She has always stood up for what she believes in – she cannot allow herself to be used as some sort of endorsement of, or deflection from our Government and especially Green party led, climate change efforts which frankly are pitiful, deplorable and shameful”.