Alan Farrell (Dublin Fingal, Fine Gael)
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I thank the witnesses for appearing before us. At this late stage, most of my questions have been answered but I will probe one or two issues to see if further information is available.

If the CRU had the legislative ability to produce a framework for future hedging, would it utilise that framework, given that the vast majority of the hedging I have seen thus far appears to be for 12 to 18 months and regulatory intervention at that point may be detrimental later on? Is the CRU legislatively empowered to intervene if an energy supplier does not pass on energy savings to its consumers? This is a pertinent question under the circumstances.

Regarding smart meters, I have listened carefully to what the witnesses had to say in response to the various questions posed by members and I accept Ms MacEvilly's point about data usage versus tariff usage, but no one is doing anything with approximately 90% of installed meters. That is a failure, although I will attribute blame at another time. Notwithstanding the witnesses' earlier responses, is there something we can do to incentivise consumers to use these meters to download and access their data? As has been pointed out by other members, not all of our suppliers are providing tariff-based packages. That is outrageous. That information is there for them to utilise so that they can best support and incentivise more customers to come to them. I do not understand why they are not doing it.

Regarding gas arrears, the witnesses have alluded to the fact that the energy credit might be insulating electricity consumers somewhat, as the credit was predominantly applied to electricity accounts. On the gas side, are there further requirements for intervention on the part of the State or is the arrears situation manageable in the context of rates decreasing because the price of the therm has reduced so significantly and it is just a matter of time until those savings are passed on?