Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I have met representatives of every industry involved with the energy and environmental area. With regard to the UK and gas security, there was a statement from the UK Government's spokesperson earlier in August indicating the UK has no issues with either gas or electricity supply and the UK Government is fully prepared for any scenario, even those that are extreme and very unlikely to occur. The spokesperson indicated there are long-established co-operation mechanisms with Ireland that would ensure gas supply to Ireland in the event of any emergency. We cannot rule out anything and the report to be published in the coming weeks will look at every aspect of this and ensure we have provisions for every eventuality.

The Deputy's role about local authorities is absolutely correct. We need everyone in the country really to focus on energy efficiency in everything we do. Our Reduce Your Use campaign is going to be ramped up and it is the best protection against high prices. The Deputy is correct that our local authorities have not delivered quickly enough the scale of retrofitting we need and want, and they have not been spending the budgets in both that and other areas, including active travel, to deliver efficiency and protect our people at this time. We must collectively work together, particularly for the more vulnerable households, including those with lower incomes and in inefficient homes. We must have a razor-sharp focus on those people and protect them in the next two to three years.