Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I understand the Minister of State's point, but that does not solve the problem for those involved in farming, transport or haulage or for the ordinary worker who has to get to work and cannot rely on public transport because there is none in the area or it is not feasible. Their costs are going up. It is reckoned that, if inflation continues as it has been, prices will increase by between €750 and €1,000 per year. The Minister of State is correct about prices fluctuating, but they do not fluctuate to that degree. The Ukraine crisis is being used as an excuse to explain away the current rise, but the increases in petrol and diesel prices far predated the war in Ukraine.

People take temporary measures in an emergency, and this is an emergency. We took temporary measures for the past year or two during the pandemic. What emergency measures are going to be taken to ensure the increase in the cost of fuel is not passed on to those who cannot afford it?

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