Taoiseach Brian Cowen has declined to commit to the publication of a climate change bill in advance of the Copenhagen summit on climate change.
Labour Deputy Liz McManus said such a move would send out a strong message that Ireland was playing its part in tackling the problems of climate change.
However, Mr Cowen said the Government had many legislative commitments over the coming months.
He added that the real issue was whether Copenhagen was going to be a success or not.
The Taoiseach said there would be further discussions between now and then to ensure engagement in the issue by such countries as the US and China.
He said the recent UN conference on climate change had been a success as the Secretary General Ban Ki-moon had brought considerable political momentum behind the subject during what he called a critical stage in the negotiations and discussions.
He said the challenge now was to convert political momentum into political will.
