Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Mr. Makhlouf. One of the factors leading into the overall inflation numbers is the issue of energy prices. For households and families, as Mr. Makhlouf has rightly pointed out, this is probably the one they are most concerned about because they are feeling it right now and, as we go into a colder snap, people are having to heat their homes more, the bills are coming in and they are quite significant compared with what they were this time last year. Depending on the type of fuel used or the method used to heat one's home, this is felt differently in different areas.

For example, in the Border region and the west there is an over-reliance or a reliance on home heating oil, which means two thirds of people use heating oil to heat their homes. That is a sharper increase than what we would see with gas or electricity, although those increases are significant in themselves. Is there any reassurance in what the Governor has seen in terms of when those numbers will start to level out or decrease?