Pauline O'Reilly (Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I thank the witnesses for coming before us. Several of my questions related to the standing charge. I would like to continue with the point Senator Dooley mentioned at the start of his contribution. It seems to me that the more the Government uses taxpayers' money to put money into reducing the overall use of electricity, the more the ESB is increasing its standing charge and therefore it is not having the desired impact that it needs to have across households. The poorest in society are the ones who are using the least energy. Does Mr. Fenlon agree with that? In general, the smaller households and those with less income probably use less electricity. They are the ones who are footing the bill when it comes to the standing charge.