The Green Party has said that while it welcomes the publication of the Government's climate action plan it goes nowhere near far enough on public transport.

Green Party leader Eamon Ryan said there was nothing significant about transport contained in the document.

He said that the Government had to explain why it has more than 50 priority road projects and at the same, there is no public transport project under construction.

The party wants more invested in measures to encourage people to cycle and to walk, changes which it says would create a better country.

Fianna Fáil said it was reasonably pleased with the plan but criticised the fact that it was not costed.

The party said that, once again, Government was overly focused on today's announcement and not its content.

Environment spokesperson Timmy Dooley said while the Cabinet travelled to the launch on a hybrid bus - it had continued to purchase hundreds of "dirty diesel" ones.

He said Fianna Fáil supports the principle of a carbon tax increase provided something is done to alleviate fuel poverty.

Sinn Féin's environment spokesperson Brian Stanley said his party is opposed to plans to increase carbon taxes.

He said this tax has not worked and the Government has failed to put sufficient emphasis on alternatives to curb carbon emissions.

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Describing the plan as "green washing", he called for more investment in public transport and large-scale funding for people to insulate their homes.

Solidarity-PBP also accused the Government of seeking to "blame ordinary people" while giving the fossil fuel industry a free pass.

TD Bríd Smith said that if the Government was serious about climate action it would not have sought to block her legislation to end fossil fuel exploration here.