Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)

My Department will spend over €530 million in 2011 on the fuel scheme and the telephone, gas and electricity elements of the household benefits package which will benefit over 630,000 people. Difficult decisions have had to be made in the light of commitments made by the previous Government. Unfortunately, I am not in a position to reconsider the changes to the fuel allowance and household benefits package announced last week. From September, the fuel allowance is to be standardised at €20 per week, the current rate for the majority of customers, with no additional allowance payable to those living in a smokeless fuel area. The cost of the telephone allowance will be reduced following negotiations with Eircom which will ensure customers will receive €26.86 of value on their bills, at a cost to the State of €22.22 per month. The number of free units provided under the electricity and gas allowance scheme will be reduced to the level at the start of 2007 from 2,400 units to 1,800 per month. These three measures will generate savings of €17 million in 2011 and €65 million annually.

While we have had to implement these measures, the House should be aware that the savings were provided for last December in budget 2011 but were not specified or announced by the Government at the time. While, of course, we want to protect the basic social welfare payments which have very positive economic and social effects, regrettably there is an ongoing necessity to achieve savings owing to our commitments with the IMF-EU-ECB troika. There will be an ongoing necessity to curtail overall expenditure in 2012 and later years.

Energy poverty is a factor of income, energy prices and the thermal efficiency of the home. The most cost-effective means of protecting households from energy poverty is to reduce their consumption of energy through improving the thermal efficiency of the home. My colleague, the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, Deputy Rabbitte, and I are working towards this end.

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