Thomas Gould (Cork North Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The Minister, Deputy Ryan, said yesterday we cannot be certain what any energy company will do. We absolutely can be certain. We can make sure we are certain. We can meet with them, put the hard questions to them and tax their huge profits through a windfall tax. We have been calling for such a tax for months, and it was not until Europe brought it in that the Government finally considered it. It is something we should have been doing but the Government hid behind Europe again when it had no right to do so. When we see the Europeans doing it, why must we always follow? Why can we not be progressive and out in front on this? It is shocking that the Minister’s attitude to profiteering by energy companies is to shrug and say we do not know what they will do. He is the Minister and it is his job to know what they will do.

In Cork this week, temperatures fell to -5°C. That was really cold and there was no break in it, but 73 days after the Taoiseach made a commitment that no one would be cut off in freezing temperatures and in an orange weather warning, prepay meter customers still faced being cut off. Their electricity could still have been disconnected if they ran below €20 credit. The Government tells them to go to social welfare.

It takes a minimum of six weeks and maybe ten weeks to get help. The Government tells them to go to charities. There was an orange weather warning for Ireland that there would be snow and ice on the ground. In Cork there was ice all over the place. How is it then the Government is telling people to go to a charity? People should not have to leave their homes in such treacherous conditions and they should not need the support of charities. The Government had 73 days, and while I was pleased to hear yesterday’s announcement that this will stop from now on, it is too little, too late for many people who have kept their heating off for the past 73 days and who have been under pressure financially. This commitment was given, so why did it take so long?

In Cork City Council on Monday night, the council decided to turn up the heating in libraries and leave them open. I thank Cork City Council for this. It encouraged anyone who had difficulty with heating or who was worried about heating to come in. Is that the kind of society we have that is using libraries in that way?

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