Willie O'Dea (Limerick City, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

While I welcome last year's increase in the fuel allowance, it was only a partial reversal of a previous cut. I recognise that fuel prices are dropping, but research published recently in the Journal of Environmental Healthrelating to the island of Ireland, that is, the Thirty-two Counties, concluded that Ireland has the highest rate of excess winter mortality in Europe, with an estimated 2,800 excess deaths each winter. Fuel poverty is a crucial factor in this phenomenon. I am referring to that research to reinforce the point that there is a real problem here. Financial assistance to those who cannot afford the cost of fuel is a key factor in combating fuel poverty, and I want to impress that point on the Minister.

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