Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Labour)

The 11% increase in the price of fuel in the past year impacts on everybody. However, it impacts disproportionately on people on low fixed incomes, who are the responsibility of the Department of Social and Family Affairs. It is not good enough for the Minister to say she is talking to various Departments and agencies. Something much more concrete needs to happen. As we speak, representatives of the Institute of Public Health in Ireland are appearing before the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Social and Family Affairs making the case for an interdepartmental fuel poverty group as exists in Northern Ireland.

There is a need to formalise the relationship between the Departments of Social and Family Affairs, Communications, Energy and Natural Resources and the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, as well as the other agencies involved. Would the Minister consider taking the initiative to establish such a group? At the moment there is no strategy to deal with fuel poverty and we know that problem is likely to increase incrementally over the coming years. Given that the Department of Social and Family Affairs has responsibility for people on low incomes in ensuring that their income is adequate to meet their expenses — quite patently, it is not adequate with the kinds of fuel increases we have seen recently — will the Minister consider taking that initiative in setting up such an interdepartmental group?

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