Paul Donnelly (Dublin West, Sinn Fein)

Energy costs are driving people into energy poverty. What does it look like? It is less for food, clothes and bills. It is the choice between eating or heating. For working families, older people and people with disabilities, it is about hesitating to turn on the heating for fear of the bills coming through. People on low incomes are the worst affected.

The Minister's Department said that people would be €321 worse off, yet incredibly the Government chose to give developers €230 million in tax breaks for apartments they are already building rather than helping people who are struggling. The Government has chosen to allow energy companies, in the words of the Taoiseach, to gouge our citizens. When prices around Europe started to fall, energy companies in Ireland increased prices and also recorded record massive profits. I can assure Members that their executives and shareholders have no fear about sticking on the heating today.

Sinn Féin has produced a number of proposals, including legislation to strengthen the energy regulator's power to do its job properly and hold energy companies to account. Fairness and affordability should be at the heart of Ireland's energy market rather than profiteering. Until such reforms are implemented to bring down prices for people, the Government should have continued to provide electricity energy credits.

Emergency supports should not have been withdrawn precisely as Ireland's energy crisis is deepening. Taking away support when prices are sky-rocketing is not only cruel, but it proves yet again how cynical many of the commitments made by the Government parties during the election were. People are quite rightly asking why the Government chose to end energy payments if its own experts said that people would be worse off? The answer to those people is quite simple: they were facing an election and that is what you do during elections, is it not?

Winter has started and there is no doubt that it is colder than it was last year. The Government can choose to help hundreds of thousands of people who are in energy poverty and many more who are going to be facing into energy poverty in 2026. It can choose to change its mind and bring back energy supports while planning for legislation to strengthen the energy regulator and tackle energy price gouging. That is the Government's choice over the coming weeks and months. I urge it to make that choice. Too many people are really struggling.

See this speech in context