Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

To clarify, does the Minister now believe in the idea of windfall taxes on electricity generators, particularly those in the renewable sectors? On 4 May last, he told the Committee on Budgetary Oversight that "another option is higher taxes on the suppliers of renewable energy", stating also that "Renewable energy is the way out of this, over time, and I would argue that taxing those who are at the heart of trying to provide new sources of energy supply is the wrong direction to go." Is the Minister now saying that is the right direction to go or is he saying it is still the wrong direction? I am confused. He was opposed to this measure. He told Newstalk that a windfall tax on these companies would undermine investment in the sector. President von der Leyen has made very clear that because these companies are generating profits that never seemed imaginable, Europe will now bring forward a windfall tax. Is this something the Minister now supports? Can he explain why he has changed his position? When Bruno Le Maire brought forward a proposal to the Eurogroup and ECOFIN in October 2021 to decouple gas and electricity prices on the wholesale market, what position did the Minister personally adopt at that meeting?

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