Peter Fitzpatrick (Louth, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to speak on the retrofitting scheme and how it can help with the spiralling cost of living, which is the biggest concern of my constituents at present. People are being crucified by inflation and electricity prices 89% above the EU average. This is completely unsustainable. If the Government refuses to cap electricity prices and get on top of the situation now, thousands of households will be facing into an extremely worrying and uncertain winter. Time is of the essence if the most vulnerable people across Ireland are to receive timely assistance. The ESRI estimates that more than 40% of people will be in energy poverty this winter.

With regard to prices, vulnerable constituents and housing poverty, my constituency office is acutely aware that the people of County Louth and east Meath simply cannot afford to retrofit their energy-inefficient homes. We well know that poorly insulated homes require more energy to heat which will result in increasing carbon emissions and even higher energy bills for households. I would not say that the Government has done nothing but it needs to do more. Currently more than 9,000 homes await work under the better energy warmer homes scheme, with a waiting time of 27 months, which is shocking. Recently I had a woman in my constituency office who applied under the retrofitting scheme for a heat pump to replace her energy-inefficient oil boiler. She met all means requirements. Due to the backlog of applications she went ahead and paid someone to install a heat pump. Subsequently one year later, when an assessor called to view the property, she was denied a grant as work had been done. This needs to be changed.

I, therefore, ask the Government to consider the immediate approval of allocations received under the national retrofitting scheme. We need to help the people now by providing a greater investment in retrofitting households as a matter of urgency. Not a day passes when there is not a queue in my office of people looking for help to fill in applications forms to see what is available. However, many low- and middle-income households in my constituency of Louth and east Meath are excluded from retrofitting under the Government scheme as they do not qualify for the better energy warmer homes scheme and do not have the disposable income required to afford a deep retrofit under the one-stop shop service. This needs to change. State funding should be proportionally allocated on the basis of need and specifically targeted at those who rely on burning solid fuel for heat.

It should be acknowledged that the amount the Department has allocated to this grant scheme has increased each year since 2014, which is welcome. However, we face significant challenges in meeting the targets in Housing for All and the retrofitting targets given inefficiently lengthy mean-tested grant applications and the limited throughput of apprentices in the construction sector, which is already understaffed. The biggest problem we have in Louth and east Meath is the increase in construction costs and material and the shortage of skills and labour. This is putting the cost of these upgrades and essential works beyond the reach of most recipients of grant approval. It is very hard at the moment to get value for money. In the incoming budget the Government should ensure that the grant scheme can meet the demands and reflect the increase in construction costs to meet targets for emissions reductions. The upper limit grants should reflect the increase in the cost of construction. If we are to tackle this issue we need to take a much more direct route.

I would also like to raise the concern that current and new housing developments in my constituency of Louth and east Meath are still installing gas lines instead of heat pumps. These developments are going to cost us in the coming years and they will have to be replaced. The Government must look at long-term costs and implement regulations now. Additionally, we cannot have a situation whereby people are in energy poverty which will have subsequent effect of increasing hospital admissions, causing further stress on health service. These least can afford this energy. There should be a reform of the current national retrofit plan whereby the focus of funding and resources is redirected towards those in greater need of retrofitting. We need to improve delivery times and cost efficiencies while increasing the number of retrofits, especially for those in need. In the upcoming budget the Government must keep its promises and we must follow up the allocation of the €165 million towards housing, climate change and balanced regional development. Families need a warm home and stability. Ireland needs a progressive and effective retrofit plan that will help our emissions reduction targets while delivering wider social and economic benefits for workers and families. Morale in the country is very low. Families are suffering. The people need help now. It has been said that either people are going to eat or heat. The Minister of State has an opportunity to heat the people's homes and, next Tuesday, the Government has the opportunity to let people eat. Many people are coming into my constituency office who want to avail of these schemes. As the previous speaker said, if they had work done ten or 15 years ago, that is affecting their applications as well. I ask the Minister of State to please have a look.

See this speech in context