Michael Kitt (Galway East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to speak briefly on this Bill. I support what Deputy Moynihan said in proposing the legislation and also the points made by Deputy Colreavy on the matter. As the Minister said, all Members of this House are concerned about the number of customer disconnections that are taking place throughout the country. When I look back with nostalgia on my years in this House, I often recall a time when I could ring an ESB office in my local area - perhaps the regional offices in Ballinasloe or Athlone, or the other offices in Tuam or Loughrea - to talk to someone I knew about disconnections, or about new houses or community centres that needed an electricity supply to be installed. There was a very good engagement between the ESB and the general population, or public representatives advocating on behalf of people. In those days, we probably had more reason to contact ESB offices. It is now very difficult to engage with someone in such circumstances. As Deputy Moynihan said, consumers should have a reasonable opportunity to engage with their energy suppliers. In most cases in rural Ireland, that supplier is the ESB. It would be welcome if consumers could devise payment plans with their energy suppliers, for example. As the Minister knows, many people are now in genuine financial difficulty and need to talk to someone. I welcome the initiatives he mentioned, such as the roll-out of smart meters and the work being done by the Commission for Energy Regulation.

It is amazing that following the reorganisation of the ESB, which took place in the 1980s, I could not deal with offices in Ballinasloe or Athlone when I was working on behalf of people in my part of County Galway. I always found it quite unusual that I had to contact an office in Dundalk. That was the start of the rationalisation that took place within the ESB. As the energy network was rolled out, regional and local offices went by the wayside. The significant centralisation to which I refer has taken place in other areas as well. I hope we can return to the position that prevailed when we were able to talk to designated people about issues relating to payments and breakdowns in supply. It seems from the weather we have had in recent years that more and more breakdowns in supply are likely to take place. This will raise all kinds of issues in people's lives, for example as they try to cook. The supply of water is dependent on electricity. I refer not only to the rural water schemes throughout rural Ireland but also to the schemes provided through local authorities.

These are difficult issues and in many ways I might be like the person who would want to turn back the clock but I would hark back to those days with a certain degree of nostalgia with regard to the engagement with bodies such as ESB in particular.

I also recall another issue that arose in the 1980s, that of colocation when it came to provision of the supply of electricity. The colocation argument related to the erecting of an ESB mast in a location and it also including a phone mast. Such colocation was great until we did not have co-operation because many of the phone suppliers wanted their own masts. Then people began to question - as they are doing now with the pylon issue - the need for all these masts and that if there was colocation for such provision would too much be happening on a mast. It could have been providing electricity supply, the phone network and the famous multipoint microwave distribution system for television, MMDS. Some very inventive people, mostly in the west because of the geographical accident there, as it were, with people not being able to get mutlichannel stations on their televisions, put up deflectors. I remember having a delegation in the Dáil and trying to explain to senators and congressmen from the United States what a deflector system was. It is a difficult system to explain but a man called Tom Gildea from Donegal got elected to the Dáil on the basis that he wanted to have a deflector system in place in Donegal. The words of the song at the time of the campaign were: "The country is a mess - no MMDS". Even though it is Friday I am sure the Acting Chairman will not let me sing that song. The title of the song was "Keep Your Promise to Thomas". People did keep their promise to Thomas and he was elected.

That campaign also helps us understand the emotive situation regarding pylons and how we deal with the electricity supply and if we are to colocate such provision with the provision of other utilities such as phones, television systems and different forms of energy throughout the country. If we started over again, I am sure we would have great difficulty trying to devise a system of electricity but now that we are where we are, we have to try to deal with the pylon question on the one hand and, as was pointed out by Deputy Moynihan, the question of engagement having regard to the personnel involved. Great people are engaged in the provision of electricity supply and they had to cope in very difficult circumstances with the severe weather conditions in recent months. Every year the issue of a breakdown in energy supply arises due to bad weather conditions.

Another issue is disconnections, which is the main focus of this Bill. We all agree that disconnection should be a last resort. Many studies have been carried out in Australia, as was mentioned, and in New South Wales in particular, on the impact on people of the anxiety caused by disconnections. People may not be able to pay their energy bills due to unemployment, illness, unusually high bills or multiple bills coming into a household. Being disconnected causes people stress and they do not have a chance to discuss these issues. People could be cut off even though they paid their bill some weeks prior to the disconnection. These are all issues that must be taken into consideration. Above all, if a payment plan is put in place it must be realistic. I have been told by many people, and I agree with them, that many payment plans are unaffordable. There is a message in what has happened in the Australian market for the Irish market as to how we should do things better. I am concerned about these matters and in particular about a disconnection which continues for a long time as it compounds difficulties for people. There is the extra cost of reconnecting, of which we are all aware with every utility.

I very much welcome what the Minister said about funding for the Warmer Homes scheme and that he has provided money for this. This is one of the great schemes. The ESB is involved in it. Much work is done under it for people who are in various categories such as those in receipt of fuel allowance where they do not need to apply. Those who have got the work done through private contractors have welcomed it. There are difficulties with regard to what work qualifies and what work does not qualify under the scheme and I have spoken to the Minister about this previously. I always make it clear to my constituents that they should not proceed with any work until they get approval for it under the scheme and are told when to begin work. They should ensure that they do not get caught out by the anomalies and difficulties in this regard where they could be told they should not have started the work or that they have got the wrong work done or the wrong supplier. By and large the companies that do this work are first-class. There was a time when companies could not finish jobs and other companies had to come in to complete the work. Most of those problems have been dealt with. I hope the Minister will continue to secure the funding for the insulation of houses, which is very important for people, be they elderly or suffering long-term illness, who need that comfort and security, and they will enjoy a warmer home because of this good scheme.

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