Ruairi Ó Murchú (Louth, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

We all welcome this legislation, although it is one of those Bills that we would have liked to have seen earlier. It is a straightforward requirement that companies realise the service expected of them, particularly those that operate in the telecommunications field. We all know of the issues that existed with Eir. The pandemic brought us into a different world where we had an absolute necessity for as much connectivity as possible in our homes and the many other places where we ended up doing a great deal of business that we might not have done in those places before the pandemic. We need to ensure that all providers are providing people with the necessary level of service.

Complaints need to be dealt with quickly so that people can move on. Obviously, that has not always happened. One reason for this from ComReg's point of view - the Joint Committee on Transport and Communications has dealt with ComReg many times - is that it did not have enough teeth and has needed to use the High Court.

We all realise how backlogged the courts are. There is an absolute requirement for them to have some of the powers provided for in this legislation. We must make sure that compliance can be ensured. This will only happen where it is a matter of "show me the money", as the line in "Jerry Maguire" goes. We all agree it is necessary that we have the possibility of imposing fines of up to €5 million or 10% of turnover. This type of provision can ensure that there is sufficient leverage and that when ComReg speaks, it can speak softly because it will then have a big stick. We must ensure this happens.

It is vital that people can get services that are not only affordable and deliverable but are also up to a certain standard. If difficulties are encountered, it is crucial that complaints be dealt with. In that sense, then, we welcome this measure. It has been the case that, to a degree, we were lagging in this regard and the EU had to put us under a certain amount of pressure. In fairness to Deputy O'Rourke, he has put several questions concerning the costs in this regard and the associated engagements and interactions. I do not think it would do the Minister any harm to detail all this.

Another issue where I am in agreement in this context concerns the fact that we are dealing with regulators without the powers we would wish them to have. We are all aware of the changed circumstances we are in now concerning energy security and energy price security. I refer to the cost of everything from electricity and home heating oil to the fuel we put in our cars. We are certainly in a different place and this is due to many factors. The most serious of these is Russia's vile invasion of Ukraine, which we all stand in solidarity against. The reality is that we must do what we can to ensure people have these vital services. Nothing is more vital than electricity and heating. It must be ensured that people are getting the best deals possible. We must examine the situation where the CRU does not have responsibility for aspects such as communal heating systems and standing charges and is also limited in those areas where it does have responsibility. This present set-up must be considered from the perspective of being able to ensure decent prices for those services which are essential to how we live our lives. It is necessary, therefore, that this context is dealt with.

Moving on to talk about the energy sector in general, we all know that at an international level, and especially at EU level, we are only starting the conversation about getting to grips with addressing the energy and electricity markets. The Government was negligent in not pushing forward the required measures to decouple the price of electricity from that of natural gas. Sinn Féin put forward a proposal suggesting what we saw as an approach to capping in this regard, from the perspective of providing people with clarity concerning what their prices would be, and proposing that this be done in the context of the leverage of a windfall tax. I have no doubt that we will move in that direction at international level and, eventually, in the domestic sphere. This is what needs to be done.

I welcome what is in this legislation. We will deal with any proposed amendments on later Stages and we will be very interested to see if anything else is added to the Bill, as can happen from time to time. We support better services for our people and regulators having the necessary teeth to be able to do their jobs. This is about affordable and decent services and ensuring people's complaints are dealt with in a timely and decent manner. If someone needs to be dealt with properly, that is what will happen.

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