The heavy rainfalls and the resultant floods they caused last November were not triggered by climate change. Nor does the big chill that froze things solid at the turn of the year mean that global warming has somehow passed us by.
Both events - though certainly extreme - were within the range of "natural variability", according to a study published this morning by the Royal Irish Academy.
The widespread flooding along the west coast from Galway down to Cork sparked considerable public concern. There were fears that submerged homes would now be the norm due to climate change.
These fears are misplaced however, according to Prof Ray Bates, chairman of the RIA's climate change sciences committee.
"We are not saying global warming is not significant, it is very significant," he said in advance of the report's launch. Climate change induced by human activity remains "a long-term threat", he says.
Comment: Just you wait Henry Higgins, just you wait! Sott.net's 4-year weather forecast: floods, lots of them. Droughts and sudden localised heatwaves too, but predominantly deluges of rain, later turning to storeys-high snow and ice with a risk of psychopaths-induced Ice Age.