Michael Ring (Mayo, Fine Gael)

In recent times, the average two-monthly domestic ESB bill has increased by between €30 and €50. The annual cost of electricity used to be approximately €870 per household, on average, but it has now increased to €1,000. People on low incomes are not able to cope. I will concentrate on three aspects of this issue this evening.

I agree with my colleagues who spoke about turf. When I hear members of the Green Party talking about carbon tax and other environmental strategies, I worry about the poor, the weak and the sick, who will have to pay more as a result of such initiatives. The big guys will be able to write their additional costs off against tax, but poor people will have to meet such costs from their social welfare incomes and their pensions. I do not envisage that there will be a major increase in the pension this year. Ireland does not enjoy much sunshine or very good weather over the course of the 52 weeks of the year. I do not think we have had three consecutive fine days this year. People on the fuel allowance scheme believe the allowance should be paid all year round, rather than merely from October to April. All elderly people want is to be safe and warm in their homes. They worry that they may die in their homes from the cold because they do not have enough fuel to stay warm. They must be protected.

I would like to speak about the regulator and the Minister. The Minister washed his hands of the ESB and the energy sector when he handed responsibility for it to the regulator. I sent a scathing letter to the regulator a few weeks ago. He awarded major increases to the ESB last year. Three months later, the ESB announced that it did not want the increases. It had been given too much. The poor people still had to pay the ESB, however. They were topping it up. I accept that oil and diesel were quite expensive on the world market earlier this year. The people of rip-off Ireland were ripped off yet again when the price of fuel increased. Home heating oil prices in Ireland are the highest in Europe. Why should oil be any dearer in Ireland than in any other part of Europe? The rip-off merchants of this country are making it dearer. The banks ripped off the people. They got so greedy that they brought down the economy.

I wish to return to the price of fuel. The minute the price of oil and diesel increased, the regulator could not wait to sanction an increase on the part of the ESB and whoever else wanted one. He could not run fast enough to do so. He provided for a massive increase of 19% or 20%. He said he would re-examine the matter at a later stage. When the price of oil and diesel decreased, the regulator failed to say to the ESB that the price of electricity needed to be cut because fuel prices had gone down. He did not do that. The old, sick, weak and poor of this country should be protected.

I will comment on the role of the local authorities in this regard. The health boards used to run the disabled person's grant scheme, under which roofs and other parts of houses could be improved. The scheme helped people to retain some heat in their homes. Responsibility for such matters has now been passed to the local authorities, which is fine. There is no point in doing that, however, without also giving the local authorities the money to help people. Thousands of applications were made in my county. The county council has all the reports ready and is ready to grant-aid the money but the problem is that it does not have any money. There is no point giving schemes to the local authorities when they do not have resources or money.

The budget will be presented in two weeks. I hope the weak, sick and elderly are looked after, particularly with regard to fuel. I know it is not a good time and that we have a shortage of money. However, this is when we should look after the weak and vulnerable in society. I want to send a message to the Minister for Social and Family Affairs. She had better ensure the fuel allowance is increased. It has not been increased for many years. One would not even buy a bottle of gas for what one receives, not to mention coal because one would not even get half a bag of coal for it. It is time a significant increase was made.

To the Green Party I state that the people of this country are beginning to realise it is wonderful to have green policies. However, who will pay for them? It will be the weak, the old and those on low incomes because big businesses will be able to write it off and pass it on to those who cannot afford it. To the Minister, the Government and the Green Party, I state their policies are great but who will pay for them? The people cannot afford to pay any more. They have enough of it.

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