Voting on key nature restoration legislation in the European Parliament's Environment committee has been postponed until 27 June.
An initial amendment to reject the Nature Restoration Law was not accepted this morning, as the 88-member Environment Committee returned a split vote.
The postponement came after members failed to conclude voting on amendments within the committee's allocated time slot.
The committee was then obliged to end the session at 10:45am to allow for other Parliament voting business.
Ireland has two MEPs sitting on the committee, Grace O'Sullivan of the Green Group and Mick Wallace of the Left Group, both of whom are supportive of the law.
The proposed laws seek to restore the health of Europe's natural habitats, more than 80% of which are deemed to be in poor health.
However, the legislation has faced stiff opposition from many MEPs, leading to uncertainty as to whether it will be approved by the Environment Committee today.
This proposed nature restoration law has sparked division not just in the European Parliament, but also amongst politicians at home.
The draft legislation seeks to restore 20% of ecosystems in Europe by 2030 and all of them by 2050.
However, some MEPs in the parliament, such as members of the European People's Party, have expressed concern that the measures go too far and could lead to the loss of agricultural land and ultimately food shortages.
This has been flatly rejected by others, such as the Green and Left groups, who have accused the EPP of spreading misinformation and say rejection of such a law will come at a significant cost to humanity.
If the proposed law is passed by the committee, it is set to move to a full parliament vote next month.
If rejected, however, the legislation's future will be in jeopardy.
Read more: Divided opinions on the EU's Nature Restoration Law
