Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Go raibh maith agat. I first acknowledge the presence of the British ambassador to Ireland. Cuirim fáilte roimhe. I extend again our profound sympathies on the loss of Queen Elizabeth II for the British people, in particular for Irish unionists for whom she has been a very significant figure of great affinity and affection. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a h-anam dílis.

As the Taoiseach knows, workers and families are being hammered by unprecedented surges in energy bills. Households have been hit by more than 50 price hikes since the beginning of last year with more to come. To underscore the seriousness of the situation, a Government memo seen by the media last week states that 1 million households could face annual energy bills of €6,000 if prices keep rising at the current rate. This prediction will have sent a shiver down the spines of people who are already struggling to light and heat their homes.

We now head into the winter. We have darker days and longer nights, and households’ use of energy will increase significantly at a time when prices are through the roof, which will only add to the unbearable pressure people are under. The hard truth is that many households will go under trying to pay these extortionate bills unless the Government makes the right intervention.

There has been much kite-flying from the Government, mainly centred around further energy credits. While energy credits are well and good, they do not provide certainty. They do not protect people from the continuous barrage of hikes. In fact, when the Government introduced its initial energy credit, it was too slow. It was wiped out by further price hikes before it even landed into people’s accounts. Therefore, this is clearly a flawed approach. Households need a Government response that matches the scale of the crisis. I believe the Government must take action to cut electricity prices to pre-crisis levels and apply a cap to freeze them at that level until the end of February of next year. The benefit of this measure is twofold. First, it ensures that electricity bills are more affordable, and, additionally and crucially, it provides households with the certainty they need at these difficult times. It provides certainty that their electricity bills will be brought down, that the relief provided will not be swallowed up by future price hikes and that they can get through the winter months. Cutting electricity bills and freezing them at pre-crisis levels will deliver that assurance. It simply makes sense and yet speaking on radio yesterday, the Taoiseach ruled this out. His colleague, the Minister, Deputy Michael McGrath, echoed this, suggesting that things should simply be worked out at an EU Level. I know that people have heard that line before. They have heard that line used as an alibi for the slow response of the Government to this crisis that left households struggling for months.

Tá sé in am billí leictreachais a ghearradh agus caidhp a chur ar bhillí chun iad a choinneáil ag an méid a bhí siad roimh an ngéarchéim. Thabharfadh sé sin faoiseamh agus cinnteacht do theaghlaigh atá ag streachailt agus thabharfadh sé cosaint dóibh ó arduithe breise sna míonna amach romhainn.

It is all about choices. In the budget, the Government must choose to cut electricity bills and to cap them at pre-crisis levels. It is the right thing to do.

It is the only measure that can provide some level of certainty for households. It would prevent future price hikes and ease the burden on hard-pressed workers and families. By cutting and then capping electricity bills, the Government could choose to protect households. I am asking and urging the Government to make that choice.

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