Marian Harkin (Sligo-Leitrim, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank Sinn Féin for bringing forward this motion to reverse planned fuel increases. The Minister for Finance, Deputy Michael McGrath, knows that the planned fuel increases are driving up the cost of inflation. It is not just car owners and car drivers who will feel the pain. It is everybody because that means the cost of other products will increase.

How much of an increase in the Exchequer tax take are we looking at? I had a quick look at what diesel cost about six to eight months ago. One could actually get if for around €1.50 per litre. The cheapest one can now get it at is around €1.81 and it is €1.87 in many places. We are looking at a further increase of 10 cent by the end of October. That is an increase in the order of over 40 cent per litre. What does the Exchequer get out of that? Would I be wrong in saying that the Exchequer will get maybe an extra 20 cent plus per litre, or even more than that? I would be very interested if the Minister could give us that information because that is a huge haul for Revenue, and the ordinary car owner is footing the bill.

I looked at some of the statistics around car ownership in Sligo and Leitrim. The most recent statistics available suggested there are approximately 30,000 cars in Sligo and approximately 15,000 in Leitrim. The average driven per car per year in Sligo is approximately 17,500 km, which is similar to Donegal. In Leitrim and Roscommon, the average driven per car per year is more than 19,000 km. The State average is more than 16,000 km. We see clearly from those figures that car owners in rural areas travel significantly longer distances whether to school, work, childcare or to access services. They are hit disproportionately. We cannot say this is an unintended consequence because the Minister is well aware of those figures.

While the impact on counties such as Sligo, Leitrim, Donegal, Roscommon and other rural counties is far greater than in the largely urban areas, the hit along the Border is much greater still. I have a received a number of emails in that regard and would like to read a little from an email I received less than a week ago. My correspondent owns a petrol station on the Border. He stated that, as he wrote, the average price of diesel was €178.05 per litre and unleaded was €174.70 per litre. That was the cost in Northern Ireland according to the Consumer Council. The emailer stated that, as of the day he wrote, the cost in his petrol station was €182.90 per litre for both diesel and unleaded, meaning a margin of a measly 2.5 cent. That is not sustainable. I received this email about a week ago. We are now looking at the guts of a 10 cent increase when prices were already four to five cent dearer. The man who sent me the email went on to state that any further rises to the carbon duty or fuel duty would close the majority of Border fuel stations and lead to further retail tourism in Northern Ireland. He said his sales had already dropped by 25% in volume in recent weeks. That, he said, was not the result of lower consumption but the result of consumers heading to the North to buy fuel. He stated he understands that duty rises are to encourage people to switch to greener options but he expects us to see further deprivation in Border communities. He called on the Government to completely remove the planned rises in fuel duty and the planned annual rise in carbon duty to give his business and those of others like him a chance. He said that at present, he employs approximately 25 people and that those jobs are at risk in an area that has one of the highest rates of unemployment in the country. He said that fuel has for a while been the last remaining retail product that is cheaper in the Republic than in Northern Ireland but that rising fuel duties and prices in the Republic will encourage thousands to head north to the likes of Newry, Enniskillen and Derry on a weekly basis to get their groceries, alcohol and now fuel.

It is not just the rural counties that are being disproportionately hit. These increases will be the death knell for many petrol stations along the Border. It is a bigger and wider issue. People will travel north for their groceries and alcohol. It will almost be worth their while travelling north for fuel alone. People will not understand that unless they live in a Border area and see the circumstances. As I said before, the Minister cannot say these are unintended consequences when he knows this is happening. What is he going to do to ensure the situation does not get worse?

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