I pay tribute to everyone involved in the 2016 Remembrance Day ceremonies in Northern Ireland and the Republic to commemorate those soldiers who fought in the First World War. Some 9 million soldiers and 7 million civilians lost their lives in the four-year war.

This is a stark reminder of the personal price paid and ultimate sacrifice made by individuals and families. As 49,500 of those killed on the battlegrounds of Europe were Irish men, the loss was deeply felt across Ireland, not just in the United Kingdom. It also serves as a reminder to us that the seeds of division in the future are sown when a war is entered and the Great War was supposed to be the war to end all wars. There had never before been a war of its type in terms trench warfare and people being slaughtered on battlefields. The treaty the arose from the First World War was a significant contributory factor to the Second World War. The commemorative events should serve to strengthen our resolve to ensure war will not be seen as the way forward.

Will the Leader raise with the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Deputy Heather Humphreys, the possibility of directing decade of centenaries funding towards local communities for the erection of monuments to people from the locality killed in the First World War? I pay tribute to the many communities throughout the country who have held such ceremonies. A total of 154 people from Ballina and the surrounding area lost their lives during the First World War. There were many casualties in the Connacht Rangers. My point is that up to now most of the commemorative ceremonies have been held in Dublin and elsewhere in Europe. While I understand the reason for this, there is need for recognition of all of the communities that were affected and paid a price and which up to now have been written out of history. As I said, a commemorative ceremony was held in Ballina, but many people from Foxford and other towns in the west also lost their lives. I ask the Leader to bring this matter to the attention of the Minister to ensure proper recognition of the totality of Irish people who died in the First World War.

I am sure everyone was taken aback this morning when he or she saw the ice sculptures on display outside Leinster House. They really brought home the fact that our planet was melting. This morning I also attended a briefing in Buswells Hotel organised by the Stop Climate Chaos group. It was an eye-opener. The format was great in that Deputies and Senators from particular electoral areas were asked to sit with constituents from them. This led to the formation of small intimate groups which allowed people to be educated a lot easier and quicker. The United Nations report which was published yesterday declared 2016 to be the hottest year on record. Despite the belief of some Independent Members of the Oireachtas and triumphalist leaders worldwide, we all have to face up to the fact that we are damaging our future and that of our children and generations to come through our selfish behaviour. We need to act. Climate change has massive repercussions for the world. The Stop Climate Chaos group has made three recommendations, including that a fair payment be introduced in the case of solar power, with supplies produced by households and businesses in excess of what they need being returned to the national grid at a price that benefits the owner; that taxpayers' money be divested from the use of fossil fuels and that there be increased investment in cycling initiatives and the use of clean public transport. We need to be forward-thinking. On the massive housing programme required, we all hope the State will ensure green planning will play its part to ensure energy efficient buildings will become the norm.

Communities need to be supported through green planning and the building of efficient, green transport systems. This issue crosses almost every Department and I call on the lead Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government to climate proof everything the Government does, across all areas.

It is simply unforgivable that the Government is investing taxpayers' money, through the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund, in harmful fossil fuel industries which we know are destroying our world. Like the plastic bag tax and the smoking ban, this is an area in which we can lead by example and protect our homes and our planet. Ireland is known as the emerald isle, the country of 40 shades of green; let us have a green economy and environment to match.

I would like to follow up on Senator Mulherin's comments on the Great War memorial events that were held all over the country last weekend. It was fantastic to see the Taoiseach attend an event in Northern Ireland. I would also like to congratulate the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Deputy Charlie Flanagan, for remembering the French people who lost their lives in Paris one year ago.

I was in Trim, County Meath, laying a wreath on behalf of the Taoiseach and the people of Ireland. I would like to thank the Trim commemorative committee for its wonderful work and the other committees all over the country. We have come a long way in this country in remembering our war dead. I echo Senator Mulherin's comments about funding for the commemorative committees which are operating with very small budgets. It would be great to see some funding being made available to them.

When I was growing up in the 1970s and 1980s my family had a supermarket in Kells. There was a photograph of my great uncle, Peter Laffey, on the wall of the mineral shed because my parents were afraid to display it in our house. As the song goes, "In an old photograph, torn battered and stained, and faded to yellow in a brown leather frame". He was 25 when he died in France and I was honoured to honour him on Sunday as well as all of the other Irish men and women who lost their lives in the two world wars.