The National Youth Climate Assembly is a core deliverable of the Programme for Government and the National Dialogue on Climate Action. It is a collaboration between my Department and the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth and will be an annual event.The National Youth Climate Assembly will be comprised of 40 young people aged between 12 and 24 years of age who have been nominated by relevant organisations, including Comhairle na nÓg, youth organisations, student bodies, and community groups. The assembly will capture the voices of young people in Ireland on issues relating to climate change that are important to them. It will act as a central mechanism to include these opinions in the development of the annual Climate Action Plan and related sectoral policies. It is currently in the final stages of preparation with plans to hold the first assembly by the end of March.