Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

We cannot go any lower. I have confirmation on that in relation to diesel from the Minister for Finance today. We have reduced VAT on electricity and gas to 9%, which is the lowest it has ever been. We have taken €200 off people's electricity bills and introduced a targeted measure giving people on fuel allowance an additional €100. That is what has been done so far.

We accept we need to take further action to help people with the cost of living and are working on such action. The budget is three and a bit months away. We are working towards that, looking at the options and seeing what we might be able to introduce more quickly. Rather than waiting until January, February or March, we are seeing what we can do in October, November and December to help people before Christmas in relation to the cost of living. I do not rule out additional measures between now and then. We will continue to monitor the situation and see if prices moderate or continue to rise. I do not rule out interim measures but, as things stand, we have none planned and are working towards a budget package in a few months' time that will be in place for the winter and help people with rising costs.

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