Kieran O'Donnell (Limerick City, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I want to contribute to this debate because a significant number of hauliers and businesses have contacted me in my role as a Deputy representing Limerick City, as they have many other Deputies. They are under enormous pressure. The Minister, Deputy Donohoe, is well aware of that. I have studied the measures he has brought in. There are restrictions under the energy directive in Europe. What is required now is engagement with our European partners. There is a need for a European answer on this issue.

The rate at which fuel prices have increased, and continue to increase, is causing a significant difficulty for various sectors, primarily the haulage sector. Many operating in that sector are tied into contracts. I fully appreciate the restrictions that apply and I know the Minister has gone to the maximum rate currently allowed under the energy taxation directive. Are discussions taking place at European level to come up with a European directive on this particular issue? It is certainly going to continue for a significant period. If such discussions are not currently taking place, does the Minister anticipate them happening soon? Feeding into that, where does the Minister see the fuel rebate scheme going?

All Deputies are dealing with people on the ground. I have studied the proposal. There are major restrictions on what the Minister can do at the moment. I can see that across the areas of diesel and petrol he has gone as high as he can go. It is a start. Where are discussions at European level? Is part of the answer to work with our European partners in the context of this wartime situation to see if it is possible to give further scope to the Government? Would that in any way encounter or bring in the fuel rebate scheme?

This is a temporary measure. If we have learned anything from the Covid crisis - it is still there but we are coming out of it - it is that the Government has always been there to support business. There are many jobs at stake. There is significant frustration at the moment, particularly among the various business sectors that are very dependent on fuel. I acknowledge what is being done today and that the Minister has gone as far as he can currently.

It is all very well for Deputies to call for every measure to be brought in. The question relates to the particular structures we are operating at the moment. Then we need to have discussions at European level to see if we can get more flexibility in that area. Obviously, there are specific issues in the context of the haulage industry and the fuel rebate scheme.

Many retailers of petrol and diesel have contacted me. The majority of such retailers do not particularly like putting up high prices but there will always be the few who will exploit a situation such as the one we are currently experiencing. What can be done to ensure the reduction the Government is bringing in is passed on to customers - the ordinary people going about their daily lives and the business sector? That is the key to it.

I await the Minister's observations on those issues. I want to address the issue in a constructive fashion. The Minister is fully aware of the pressures businesses are under at the moment. All Members acknowledge that. If there are restrictions, does the answer lie in having discussions with our European partners to allow a European element to finding a way to ensure businesses come through this current horrific situation?

Basically, we can never lose sight of the fact that people are being murdered each day in Ukraine. Many of my constituents have been in contact with me. They have Ukrainian friends flying in already and they are asking how to look after them. We cannot lose sight of that. Side by side with that, at the local domestic level, external factors are giving rise to a situation almost overnight that is putting massive pressures on businesses, through no fault of theirs or of the Government.

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