Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Wednesday, 17 January 2024

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection

Energy Poverty: Discussion

Photo of Denis NaughtenDenis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Is there a difficulty with this in that the people we are talking about here, who we really need to do that, are not the ones who are, in general, going to be able to use those apps? I know in the UK, they have developed a service where people go physically to the homes and do an assessment on it. We all know that there is still low-hanging fruit there with regard to insulating attics. The single biggest measure that people could take, in terms of retrofitting, to reduce their energy consumption is to roll out a couple of rolls of insulation, and it does not take a rocket scientist to do it. Yet, it still is not happening. Lagging jackets on water tanks and so forth, managing electricity, and switching electricity supplier on an annual basis is a way of doing it. That type of information is not getting out to the type of people we need. This community energy advice service is something that could be done, maybe through the community development offices across the country. They have done this before in other areas and can do it again. Does Deputy Ó Cathasaigh wish to add anything?

Comments

No comments

Log in or join to post a public comment.