Maurice Quinlivan (Limerick City, Sinn Fein)

This week, the Irish Examiner, noted that the number of people switching energy providers is at a record high. In one month, 48,216 people switched providers. Would anyone blame them when they are being gouged, as the Taoiseach himself has said? Consumers are searching desperately for cheaper energy costs as the Government will not act, despite the State experiencing a cost-of-living crisis that continues to hit hard. In recent months, Bord Gáis Energy, Flogas, SSE Airtricity, Pinergy and Energia have all increased their consumer prices, adding hundreds of euro to the annual energy bill of many consumers. Nearly 300,000 households are in arrears on their electricity bills and almost two thirds of them have been in energy arrears for more than 90 days. This is an absolute crisis facing us. Arrears are being accumulated because the consumer price paid for energy utilities continues to increase. These increases come despite wholesale energy prices being 74% lower than in August 2022, not long after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

A lot of people will not be aware that they are not getting an energy credit this year. A lot of older people have not realised it yet. They will be shocked when their bills come in and many will not be able to afford to pay them. In Sinn Féin's pre-budget submission, we provided for a €450 energy credit and something like that needs to be done. As we stand here tonight, it is freezing outside and, as other Deputies have said, some people will be afraid to put on the heat because they will not be able to afford the bill. We are supposed to be a wealthy country and a country that looks after the most vulnerable. We are abandoning them in this when we do not need to.

The average energy bill for a three-bedroom house now stands between €1,700 and €1,800 per year. Some home heating oil costs increased by €80 in one month. In addition, people have the cost of rent and groceries, meaning many families are barely hanging on financially. Consumers desperately need assistance, yet the recent €9.4 billion budget provided nothing to workers or families. The Government has compounded the cost-of-living crisis by failing to deliver cost-of-living supports and energy credits in the recent budget. It has further compounded this crisis by failing to tackle energy companies and failing to heed our calls to plug the regulatory gap in the energy market. Our recent legislative proposal would have allowed the CRU to oversee the hedging practices of many energy companies and would have allowed sanction to be applied to any profiteering or anti-competitive behaviour discovered.

In the short time I have left - I would go on much longer if I could - we must deal with the current reality of people struggling to pay their utility bills and particularly energy bills. People continue to struggle through this cost-of-living crisis while an inept, lethargic, out of touch and outdated Government sits on its hands, does nothing and abandons them to what will probably be the coldest winter we have experienced in years.

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